Afghan quits election panel, claiming foreigners are making all decisions

A member of a UN-backed panel set up to investigate complaints of fraud in Afghanistan's presidential election resigned today, blaming the "interference of foreigners", in a setback to attempts to restore legitimacy to the electoral process. Maulavi Mustafa Barakzia, one of only two Afghans on the Electoral Complaints Commission, claimed that the three foreigners on the panel–one Canadian, one Dutch and one from the US–were "making all decisions on their own" without consultation. The panel is expected to decide this week how many votes to throw out, a decision that could force a run-off between President Hamid Karzai and his closest challenger, Abdullah Abdullah. A UN spokesman, Aleem Siddique, said the resignation was "regrettable but the work of the Election Complaints Commission must continue. The Afghan people need to see an election outcome that faithfully reflects their will as soon as possible."