Karzai accuses West of psychological warfare against Afghanistan

A newly-released video shows Afghan President Hamid Karzai accusing the Western media of psychological warfare against Afghanistan.

“Everyone listens to BBC, no matter whether it tells the truth or not. Everyone listens to CNN, no matter whether it tells the truth or not. And it mostly lies about Afghanistan,” said Karzai in the video, who seems to be from his address to the National Consultative Peace conference, in June 2010.

In the video he slammed the West’s portrayal of a gloomy future for Afghanistan after 2014, as an excuse to maintain its presence in the country.

Karzai described the West’s claims of corruption within the Afghan government as a “psychological war.”

He also criticized Washington for using unmanned aircrafts in attacking Afghanistan and killing innocent people.

On Sunday, as many as 28 civilians and policemen were killed in southern Kandahar and Helmand provinces of the war-torn country.

The United Nations announced on February 4 that 2011 was the deadliest on record for Afghan civilians. The death toll rose eight percent compared to the year before and was roughly double the figure for 2007.

Overall, 3,021 civilians died in violence related to the war and 4,507 were wounded in 2011.