Afghan President Hamid Karzai, battling to rebuild a tarnished reputation, was sworn in for a second five-year term on Thursday after a fraud-marred election and criticism he hasn't done enough to fight corruption.

"I swear to obey and safeguard the provisions of the sacred religion of Islam, to observe the constitution and other laws of Afghanistan and supervise their implementation," Karzai said in front of foreign and Afghan dignitaries in his palace in Kabul.

Karzai was declared the winner of an Aug. 20 election in which a U.N.-backed probe found a third of his votes were fake.

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