Karzai blows up at Holbrooke

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 31 (UPI) -- Amid growing frustration, Afghan President Hamid Karzai threw his sheepskin cap following a bitter meeting with U.S. special envoy Richard Holbrooke.

Holbrooke arrived in Kabul to meet with Karzai the day after the Afghan presidential elections Aug. 20. Karzai and his closest rival, former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, had made rival claims of victory the same day.

The Sunday Times of London reports the exchange became heated when Holbrooke urged Karzai to accept the outcome of the presidential elections.

The Pakistani Times reports Karzai became so infuriated that he threw his trademark cap on the table in a fit of rage.

Local Afghan officials described the move as a "big" gesture.

Early results show Karzai pulling ahead of Abdullah, though the incumbent does not have enough support to secure an outright victory.

Challenges to the outcome of the vote have grown since the Aug. 20 vote, with election monitors pointing to several claims that could affect the official results.

The election spat comes amid a growing frustration with the pace of the war, with U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, calling for a reassessment of the military strategy.

Meanwhile, two U.S. service members were killed Monday in separate attacks in the volatile south of Afghanistan, making August the deadliest month for U.S. troops since the conflict began in 2001.