In Secretary of State Colin Powell’s interview with ABC yesterday he admitted that anti-Americanism is growing in the Muslim world. He said, “I think that that will be overcome in due process because what the Muslim world will see … is that in Afghanistan, 10 million people who have registered to vote will vote on the ninth of October and bring in place a freely elected president.”

But questions are emerging as to how freely the elections will be. The Los Angeles Times is reporting evidence has emerged that U.S. officials may be pressuring Afghan presidential candidates to drop out of the race against the pro-American Hamid Karzai.

One Afghan warlord, Mohammed Mohaqiq, said the U.S. ambassador personally visited his office and offered him a reward for quitting the race. Mohaqiq said, “He told me to drop out of the elections.” Other candidates have reported also being pressured. The U.S. government has denied it is meddling in the Afghan election. Meanwhile the U.S. is helping Karzai campaign by using U.S. military helicopters to fly him to campaign events outside of Kabul. In addition the U.S. corporation DynCorp is proving him with bodyguards.