KABUL // The Afghan president Hamid Karzai called on the Taliban and other extremist groups to lay down their weapons today and participate in rebuilding the battered country.
The appeal was made in a message marking the major Muslim holiday of Eid and forms part of his reconciliation efforts in his second term in office.
Mr Karzai's call came two days after the reclusive Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, issued a statement ruling out talks with the president and calling on Afghans to break off relations with his "stooge" administration.
The hard-line militia has long refused to negotiate with Mr Karzai's government or join what it considers a puppet administration.
"From the Taliban, from Hezb-e-Islami and all our other brothers who stand armed against their country, I hope that for the peace, stability and development of their country, they come back to their homeland, their families," Mr Karzai said.
Hezb-e-Islami is a militant faction led by warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. Asked about Mr Omar's message, which was posted on a website used by the Taliban, Mr Karzai said he would not stop appealing to the group to help rebuild the country.
"We will continue to invite them until peace and stability come to this country. And this is an initiative of the Afghan people, and I wish Mullah Muhammad Omar ... and all other Taliban recognise this necessity and join with us and participate in the reconstruction of their country," Mr Karzai said.
The president also reiterated a call to his main rival during the fraud-marred presidential election, Abdullah Abdullah, to join in helping the country - although he stopped short of inviting him into the government.
Mr Abdullah, who served for several years as foreign minister in Mr Karzai's government, pulled out of an election run-off scheduled for earlier this month, saying it was impossible to guarantee a free and fair vote.
"I hope that all the candidates, Dr Abdullah and all our other brothers, come and join hands in building their country ... to be able to move our country to such a stage where Afghanistan will be able to stand on its own feet," Mr Karzai said.
His appeal echoed comments in his inauguration speech last week, when he also reached out to Mr Abdullah. But speaking after the inauguration speech, Mr Abdullah said Mr Karzai's administration had created many problems for the country.
"His record and policies I consider as the basic and fundamental reason for the failures of the international community and Afghanistan together," Mr Abdullah said.
"So for me it's those agendas for change which are important rather than my having posts in the Cabinet, that has never been my agenda."
* AP
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ICC T20 Team of 2021
Jos Buttler, Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam, Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, David Miller, Tabraiz Shamsi, Josh Hazlewood, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mustafizur Rahman, Shaheen Afridi
LOS ANGELES GALAXY 2 MANCHESTER UNITED 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
The%20Last%20White%20Man
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Kamindu Mendis bio
Full name: Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis
Born: September 30, 1998
Age: 20 years and 26 days
Nationality: Sri Lankan
Major teams Sri Lanka's Under 19 team
Batting style: Left-hander
Bowling style: Right-arm off-spin and slow left-arm orthodox (that's right!)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Scores in brief:
- New Medical Centre 129-5 in 17 overs bt Zayed Cricket Academy 125-6 in 20 overs.
- William Hare Abu Dhabi Gymkhana 188-8 in 20 overs bt One Stop Tourism 184-8 in 20 overs
- Alubond Tigers 138-7 in 20 overs bt United Bank Limited 132-7 in 20 overs
- Multiplex 142-6 in 17 overs bt Xconcepts Automobili 140 all out in 20 overs
Result
Tottenhan Hotspur 2 Roma 3
Tottenham: Winks 87', Janssen 90 1'
Roma 3
D Perotti 13' (pen), C Under 70', M Tumminello 90 2"
Recipe
Garlicky shrimp in olive oil
Gambas Al Ajillo
Preparation time: 5 to 10 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Serves 4
Ingredients
180ml extra virgin olive oil; 4 to 5 large cloves of garlic, minced or pureed (or 3 to 4 garlic scapes, roughly chopped); 1 or 2 small hot red chillies, dried (or ¼ teaspoon dried red chilli flakes); 400g raw prawns, deveined, heads removed and tails left intact; a generous splash of sweet chilli vinegar; sea salt flakes for seasoning; a small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Method
▶ Heat the oil in a terracotta dish or frying pan. Once the oil is sizzling hot, add the garlic and chilli, stirring continuously for about 10 seconds until golden and aromatic.
▶ Add a splash of sweet chilli vinegar and as it vigorously simmers, releasing perfumed aromas, add the prawns and cook, stirring a few times.
▶ Once the prawns turn pink, after 1 or 2 minutes of cooking, remove from the heat and season with sea salt flakes.
▶ Once the prawns are cool enough to eat, scatter with parsley and serve with small forks or toothpicks as the perfect sharing starter. Finish off with crusty bread to soak up all that flavour-infused olive oil.
Scream%20VI
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KINGDOM%20OF%20THE%20PLANET%20OF%20THE%20APES
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The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus
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If you go...
Etihad flies daily from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, with fares starting from Dh2,807 return. Frequent high speed trains between Zurich and Vienna make stops at St. Anton.
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
SPECS
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Company%20profile
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The%20Specs
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Results
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 32mins 03.897sec
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) at 0.745s
3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 37.383s
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) 46.466s
5.Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda) 52.047s
6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 59.090s
7. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) 1:06.004
8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) 1:07.100
9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri-Honda) 1:25.692
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin-Mercedes) 1:26.713,
Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars
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