The Afghan parliament has rejected over half of President Hamid Karzai's second slate of cabinet nominees.
Several key ministers were confirmed, including Foreign Affairs, Justice and Counter-Narcotics, but 10 out of 17 candidates were voted down, meaning Mr Karzai is still without confirmed leaders for over a third of his ministries.
Parliament unexpectedly threw out the majority of his first picks in a vote two weeks ago.
The second round of vetoes will prolong the turmoil at a time when the insurgency is worsening and after a year when record numbers of foreign troops and civilians were killed.
It also emerged that the nominee for the ministry of rural development was underage, a government official said. The candidate was 31 years old, while under the constitution the minimum age is 35.
Mr Karzai's spokesman has said he has a list of backup candidates to replace any rejected in this round of voting, and a source at one ministry had earlier said he was vetting two other prospective nominees.
But he faces a tight schedule to get them in place before travelling to the London conference, a vital international forum on the future of Afghanistan, on 28 January.
The rejection of two women, out of a record three nominated for the cabinet, was a disappointment to activists and women who had praised Mr Karzai for a bold choice.
