21.   Current Afghan leaders had worked around the clock with U.S. officials to persuade him to renounce a major role in a new government.

22.   For Karzai and any Afghan leader, the political meaning of the numbers is simple, said Leslie Oqvist, the U.N. regional coordinator in Kandahar.

23.   Hajji Zaman was the first Afghan leader here to say American forces were on the ground in eastern Afghanistan.

24.   Haass would not comment on the meeting, but it was one of many contacts in recent days between U.S. officials and Afghan leaders opposed to the Taliban.

25.   Haq came from a long line of Afghan leaders, Arsala said.

26.   He highlighted progress in the war so far by inviting interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai to watch his remarks from the House gallery.

27.   He said he expected that it will be completed within two weeks and that it had begun shortly after the raid when he visited Afghan interim leader Hamid Karzai.

28.   In so doing, they rebuff cries for more troops voiced by Afghan leaders and Kofi Annan.

29.   It has featured spirited and often courageous free speech but also heavy-handed direction from Afghan leaders in consultation with foreign diplomats.

30.   Joining them in the VIP box high were interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai and firefighters, soldiers and other citizen-heroes whose stories helped buoy a weary nation.