Germany extends 3,000-strong Afghan mission

Germany's parliament voted overwhelmingly on Friday to extend the deployment of its nearly 3,000 troops in Afghanistan for another year.

The vote in the 613-seat lower house passed 454 to 79, with 48 abstentions.

It was the final step from German lawmakers to officially extend the mission, keepingthe country's2,800 soldiers stationed mostly in the quieter northern region of the country as part of the International Security Assistance Force.

Germany also has six reconnaissance jets in Afghanistan, but has so far resisted international pressure to have its troops serve in the more volatile south, where Canadian troops are stationed.

Friday's vote passed in spite of mounting distaste for the mission from the German public. Recent opinion polls have shown that most Germans want the government to pull their troops out andbring them home, following attacks on German forces and kidnappings of German citizens there.

But Chancellor Angela Merkel has argued that withdrawing soldiers at this point could give way to a Taliban resurgence after the regime was ousted six years ago, threatening to disrupt the years of reconstruction work already accomplished during the mission.

New message from Taliban leader

Also Friday, a new message allegedly written by Taliban leader Mullah Omar appeared on the internet, calling on Afghanistan's neighbours to help "drive western forces from Afghanistan as they helped them during the Soviet Union invasion."

The message, translated by the Associated Press, said western forces should withdraw and end their "satanic" policies of air strikes that were killing civilians. He also called on insurgents to be careful of taking civilian lives in suicide bombings.

It was not clear if Mullah Omar wrote the message himself, but it appeared to be new, as it sends holiday greetings for Eid, the upcoming Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan.

The Taliban has so far rejected Afghan President Hamid Karzai's overtures last month to negotiate an end to the violence, saying it will only consider peace talks once Western troops leave the country.