UN official in Afghan to step down

The United Nations' top official in Afghanistan has said he will not renew his contract when it expires in March. Kai Eide has asked UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to start searching for his replacement.

The Norwegian diplomat's two-year tenure was damaged by controversy over his handling of the country's fraud-marred presidential election and a deadly attack on UN workers. Eide denied the incidents were linked to his decision not to renew his contract.

Norwegian diplomat Kai Eide, chief of the United Nations Mission  in Afghanistan, speaks to the Associated Press in Kabul,  Afghanistan, on Friday Dec. 11, 2009. Eide said he will not  renew his contract when it expires in March after a two-year  tenure marred by controversy over his handling of the country's  presidential election. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)