Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Thursday, Oct 4, that presidential elections in 2014 when his term will end would happen on time and "without interruption", despite a continuing insurgency and concerns about a simultaneous NATO combat troop exit.

"The election will definitely happen. Go on and choose your own favorite candidate. My term, if prolonged by even a day, will be seen as illegitimate," Karzai told a press conference at his Kabul garden palace, Reuters reported.