Gen Petraeus takes over in Afghanistan; calls for united efforts

Gen David H Petraeus, the new US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, arrived in Kabul on Friday evening to take over from Gen Stanley A McChrystal, beginning a new phase in the war there at a time of thriving insurgency and ineffective Afghan governance.

Petraeus landed two days after his Senate confirmation and is scheduled to officially take command in a ceremony Sunday. One of the early decisions for him would be about the composition of his team, which currently is composed of Gen McChrystal's key subordinates -- some of whom were responsible for the inflammatory quotations in the Rolling Stone article that led to the general's downfall.

Upon arrival Gen Petraeus called for unity between the civilian and military efforts in the Afghan war.

Gen Petraeus told a crowd of about 1,700 Afghan, American, and international guests at the US Embassy in Kabul that cooperation between the military and civilian sides "is not optional". He spoke as he made his first public appearance since arriving in the Afghan capital of Kabul on 2 July.

Hours earlier the US House of Representatives approved $33 billion in funding for a troop surge he hopes will turn the tide of the war. An amendment demanding an exit timetable from Afghanistan failed, but got 162 votes - the biggest antiwar vote in the House on Afghanistan to date. It is hoped that this will mark the beginning a new phase in the war there at a time of thriving insurgency and ineffective Afghan governance.

Petraeus takes over from dismissed US General Stanley McChrystal, who publicly disparaged the level of cooperation between US civilian and military leaders in Afghanistan in interviews printed in America's Rolling Stone magazine.