Afghan settlement talks uncertain

The United Nations' envoy to Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, has cast doubt on the future of talks aimed at settling the conflict.

Mr Brahimi said it was significant that all Afghanistan's neighbours had been taking part in the discussions, along with the United States, but there had been little progress, and there was no peace process functioning.

In an interview with the British newspaper, the Financial Times, Mr Brahimi said that while 99% of Afghans had no stake in the war, 50,000 partisans of various groups were uninterested in peace, and were holding the country hostage.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service