Karzai stands by vote fraud claims against West

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Monday he stood behind accusations that the West was responsible for election fraud in Afghanistan, despite having incurred the White House's anger over the comments.

His remarks appeared to intensify the quarrel, by directly blaming Washington for what he has described as "massive fraud" aimed at weakening him and his government. "What I said about the election was all true, I won't repeat it, but it was all true," Karzai told Britain's BBC television. (Reuters)