Afghan President Karzai to Name New Cabinet Dec. 19

Karzai will present his cabinet, which now includes 26 ministers, to the lower house of parliament or Wolesi Jirga, its speaker, Younis Qanooni, told reporters in Kabul. A month after being sworn in for a second term, Karzai repeatedly has postponed the announcement under what political analyst Haroun Mir said are conflicting pressures over appointments from his domestic political allies and the U.S. government.

As the U.S. escalates its fight against the Taliban and al- Qaeda, it also is stepping up pressure on Karzai to fight graft. Recent surveys show Afghanistan second only to Somalia as the most corrupt of 180 countries, according to the Corruption Perceptions Index published last month by the research and lobby group Transparency International.

Karzai yesterday underscored his commitment to fight corruption by opening a three-day government conference on the problem. In his speech there, he criticized the conviction Dec. 7 of Kabul Mayor Abdul Ahad Sahebi for wasting government funds by awarding a contract without inviting competitive bids.