Iran hails Karzai for his re-election

KABUL, Afghanistan, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai extended his gratitude to his Iranian counterpart for extending congratulations on his re-election in the Aug. 20 contest.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad phoned the Afghan president Thursday to congratulate him on his re-election, Karzai's office said.

The Iranian president also extended his congratulations to the Afghan people for their ability to hold a successful election, adding he looks forward to further progress in the country.

Tehran has moved independently to offer its assistance to Afghanistan, notably in terms of training police in counternarcotics activity.

The Afghan Independent Election Commission announced results from the Aug. 20 election earlier this week, saying Karzai secured 54.6 percent of the uncertified national tally.

That outcome, however, is controversial as the U.N.-backed Afghan election watchdog, the Election Complaints Commission, called for a recount of 10 percent of the vote following an earlier decision to disqualify the results from more than 80 polling stations.

An EU election team, meanwhile, reported that more than 30 percent of the votes cast for Karzai were faked. Karzai, for his part, dismissed the announcement, saying the EU claims were "irresponsible."

A report in the Times of London indicates that if the fraudulent votes were removed from the results, Karzai would take only 47 percent of the vote, triggering a runoff against former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, his closest rival.