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Afghanistan/South Asia |
Candidate killed; Taliban urge Afghan poll boycott |
2005-09-17 |
The Taliban warned the Afghan people on Friday not to take part in elections this weekend, saying they could get hurt, after gunmen believed to be from the group killed a candidate, the seventh so far. National assembly candidate Abdul Hadi was shot dead on Thursday night in the southern province of Helmand, provincial spokesman Mohammad Wali Alizai said. "The gunmen called at his house and when he came out they opened fire and killed him," he said, adding that the attackers were believed to be Taliban guerrillas. The Taliban have claimed responsibility for killing several of the seven candidates for Sunday's national assembly and provincial council polls who have now been killed. Speaking to Reuters on Friday, Taliban spokesman Abdul Latif Hakimi denounced the elections as a U.S.-orchestrated "farce" and warned Afghans they would vote at their own risk. The Taliban have previously said they would not target polling stations, but Hakimi said ordinary Afghans risked being hurt in attacks on foreign "occupation" forces on election day. |
Posted by:Fred |