KABUL, Afghanistan –  Presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah says Afghanistan was on the verge of a “very, very serious situation” before he struck a U.S.-brokered deal with his rival to avert the crisis by holding a fully audited vote count.

The ex-foreign minister, who is competing against Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai to succeed Hamid Karzai as president, spoke to The Associated Press Tuesday in an interview.

He was responding to a report that some supporters were ready to seize the presidential palace by force before the deal because they feared the June 14 runoff was being decided fraudulently.

“I wouldn’t get into the details of it — but it was a very serious, serious situation, not just in Kabul but throughout the country,” said Abdullah, an opposition leader with strong support in northern Afghanistan.