AFGHANISTAN: Mr Hamid Karzai has won last month's historic Afghan presidential election, according to the body charged with organising the vote.
For the past three years, Mr Karzai has led an interim government installed after US and Afghan resistance forces overthrew the Taliban militia in late 2001 for refusing to hand over al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
"Karzai is the winner," Mr Sultan Baheen, spokesman for the UN-Afghan Joint Electoral Management Body said.
Armed with a mandate from the people, Mr Karzai can now form a cabinet of his own choosing, though his choices will have to be ratified once the National Assembly is established after parliamentary elections due in April.
Mr Karzai's victory had never been in doubt, but counting the votes from the poll on October 9th took several weeks.