Presented by Jeremy Paxman
From the web team:
"This tragic event reminds us of the challenges facing the authorities and the people of Afghanistan to ensure the stabilisation of the country."
So said French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner today as he commented on the news that Afghanistan's deputy chief of intelligence, Abdullah Laghmani, had been killed in a bomb attack in the east of the country.
Mr Kouchner was speaking as he joined European and US envoys in Paris for talks on a new strategy for Afghanistan.
A unified response to allegations of fraud in the August presidential election is one of the main items on the agenda.
That election was meant to demonstrate Afghanistan's transition into a democratic age.
The latest counting figures released show that incumbent President Hamid Karzai has slightly extended his lead over rival candidate Abdullah Abdullah.
However, the poll has been blighted by more than 2,000 complaints of voting irregularities to the Afghanistan election commission and reports of low turnout.
Tonight, we will be looking at how the international community can maintain its support for Kabul in the face of questions over the vote, the government's track record on human rights and a bloody military campaign.
Also, Boris Johnson is in Brussels to argue against legislation proposed for finance businesses.
He says the moves to control the activities of hedge funds would target London directly and could be construed as a "naked attempt by Paris and Berlin to attack the competitiveness of London".
Michael Crick is in Brussels assessing how the London mayor has fared.
We have a film on the man known as
Russia's Obama - a watermelon seller and former student from Guinea Bissau who is attempting to become the first black man ever to be elected to public office in Russia.
And we will be asking what a degree is worth following The Howard League for Penal Reform's call for all prison officers to have one.
Are they right, or is it wrong to value educational qualifications over workplace experience?
Do join Jeremy for all that and more at 10.30pm on BBC Two, and don't forget you can leave your comments about the programme on
the Newsnight blog.
BBC Daily E-mail
Posts
