By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
US President George W. Bush is getting an update on civilian reconstruction work in Afghanistan, where rising extremist attacks are making this the most violent year since the US-led invasion that ousted the Taliban regime.
Bush will host Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Friday at the White House, where their discussion also was expected to cover the violence being waged by the Taliban and al-Qaida extremists hiding in the border regions of Pakistan.
Karzai is backing a joint US-Afghan-Pakistani military task force that could operate on both sides of the border.
Bush and Karzai will participate in a video teleconference with US provisional reconstruction team leaders, Afghan governors and representatives of the National Guard's agricultural development team. Twenty-six reconstruction teams now operate in Afghanistan - 12 led by the US and 14 directed by NATO allies and coalition partners.
The White House said Bush and Karzai, who spoke with congressional leaders Thursday, also would talk about security and the expansion of the Afghan army.
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