A Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, has wrapped up in Kabul, with leading Afghan politicians and tribal, ethnic, and religious leaders calling for an immediate cease-fire to help settle the nearly two-decade long conflict in the country. Some 3,200 representatives, separated into dozens of individual committees, met in the Afghan capital under tight security to find common ground and discuss methods of reaching a peace deal with the Taliban militant group. According to the state-run Afghan broadcaster RTA World, the Loya Jirga also called for a prisoner exchange and the opening of a Taliban office in Afghanistan. Reacting to the Loya Jirga demand for a cease-fire, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said he was "prepared to implement the fair and legitimate demand" for a truce but stressed it "cannot be one-sided," the AFP news agency quoted him as saying. The Taliban later rejected calls for a truce, which the Loya Jirga proposed should start on May 6, the beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In a statement, the Taliban said waging jihad, or holy war, during Ramadan had "even more [holy] rewards." They called the Loya Jirga "symbolic" and a "failure." The Loya Jirga said the government in Kabul must have a central role in the peace process with coordination provided by the international community. It also said human rights, including women's rights, must be protected in Afghanistan. Some opposition politicians boycotted the assembly, saying they had not been consulted by the government of President Ashraf Ghani, who organized the event. Afghanistan's chief executive, Abdullah Abdullah, was among those saying he would not attend. Ghani has alienated much of the country's political elite, who say they have been sidelined from the government's peace efforts. Many concerns remain within Afghan society about a potential peace deal with the Taliban, with some people expressing worries that the militant Islamists would try to seize power and reverse advances in women's rights, media freedoms, and legal protections. Hundreds of women attended the assembly and set out their "red lines" for any negotiations with the Taliban. Semin Noori, head of one of the assembly committees, said that "withdrawal of foreign forces should not mean that all advances made in women's rights are forgotten and we are forced to suffer again." Many leaders said the government and the Taliban must immediately agree to a nationwide battlefield truce as a prelude to a peace deal. Abdul Hannan, a committee chairman who traveled from the south of the country to attend the assembly, urged "both sides to announce a cease-fire." "The war will end only when both sides stop fighting before they sign a permanent peace agreement," he added. "Every day, Afghans are being killed without any reason. An unconditional cease-fire must be announced," said Mohammad Qureshi, another committee leader. Taliban negotiators have so far refused to negotiate with the government, calling it a puppet of the West, and have insisted on the withdrawal of foreign forces before talks with Kabul can begin. The United States has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan as part of Resolute Support, a NATO-led mission that provides training and assistance to security forces in Afghanistan as they battle Taliban fighters and other extremist groups. The Taliban now effectively controls or influences about half of the country. Dashing hopes for any quick cease-fire, the militant group has announced the start of its spring offensive, despite taking part in several rounds of talks with U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in Qatar. Even if U.S. and Taliban negotiators strike a deal to end fighting in the 18-year war, the militant group would still need to reach agreement with Afghan politicians and tribal leaders before a sustainable cease-fire could begin. Loya Jirga is an ancient Afghan tradition that has been convened at times of national crisis or to settle major disputes. It plays a purely consultative role but usually carries much influence in Afghan society. The most recent jirga was held in 2013, when the Afghan government endorsed a security agreement allowing U.S. troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond their planned withdrawal in 2014. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and AP<doc-sep>Afghanistan’s grand tribal council named Loya Jirga wants the United States to immediately pull out its forces from the war-torn country, says a commentator. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani opened the grand peace assembly, known as a Loya Jirga, under a huge tent in central Kabul on Monday, with some 3,200 tribal elders as well as senior community and religious figures from all over the country in attendance. The four-day negotiations were aimed at finding ways to strike a peace deal with the Taliban militant group. Kevin Barrett, author and Middle East expert, told Press TV on Friday that the Afghan people do not want to live under US military occupation, because they have not allowed foreigners to occupy their country in the course of history. “People in Afghanistan have pride and historically they haven’t allowed their country to be occupied without fierce resistance and today they’ve actually defeated the world’s self-proclaimed sole superpower,” Barrett argued. “The Loya Jirga is calling for the US to get out and the only way that this war is going to end is when the US officially surrenders and completely withdraws," the analyst added.<doc-sep>Afghan President Ashraf Ghani opened a four-day Loya Jirga, or Grand Assembly on April 29, with more than 3,200 delegates seeking to agree on a common approach to peace talks with the Taliban. The Loya Jirga that brings together politicians, tribal elders and other prominent figures, was overshadowed by no-shows of several high-ranking officials, including Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, Ghani’s partner in a unity government. President Ghani's Special Envoy Omar Daudzai said that delegates from Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan are among the participants of the gathering that is taking place under tight security in Kabul. Ghani told the gathering that he wants to create a "unified stance" on peace. He called the participants "ambassadors of peace" in Afghanistan, and said the Loya Jirga delegates will determine the "direction" of the peace process. Taliban negotiators have so far refused to negotiate with the government, calling it a puppet of the West, and have insisted on the withdrawal of foreign forces before talks with Kabul can begin. The United States has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan as part of Resolute Support, a NATO-led mission that provides training and assistance to security forces in Afghanistan as they battle Taliban fighters and other extremist groups, including Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda. Last week, the United States, Russia, and China said in a joint statement that they have agreed on the goal of withdrawing foreign forces from Afghanistan and seeking an "inclusive Afghan-led" peace process. Based on reporting by Tolonews.com, AP, and dpa<doc-sep>KABUL, Afghanistan — An Afghan grand council on Thursday agreed on several recommendations for peace talks with the Taliban, after four days of meetings in Kabul meant to hammer out a common strategy for future negotiations. President Ashraf Ghani had convened the council of more than 3,200 participants, known as Loya Jirga, earlier in the week. Though the gathering is consultative and its recommendations are not binding for Ghani, it underscored his government’s effort to project a unified stance. However, a number of prominent Afghans, including Ghani’s partner in the unity government, Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, boycotted the council, which ends on Friday. WATCH: The U.S. is trying to negotiate peace with the Taliban, but is Afghanistan ready? The U.S. has in recent months stepped up efforts to resolve Afghanistan’s 17-year war — America’s longest conflict — and has been pressing for direct talks between the Taliban and Kabul. The insurgents refuse to talk to the government, considering it a U.S. puppet, though they have held several rounds of talks with U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad. The participants in the Loya Jirga — which included politicians, tribal elders, many prominent figures and others — were divided into dozens of committees and discussed several issues, including a cease-fire and women’s rights in keeping with the tenets of Islam. The Taliban have so far refused to accept any cease-fire until the roughly 17,000 NATO troops — 14,000 of whom are American — withdraw from Afghanistan. The council overwhelmingly backed talks between Kabul and the Taliban and also called for the U.N. to remove its global terrorist designation for the Taliban, a long-standing demand of the insurgents. READ MORE: Pro-government forces kill more Afghans than insurgents, U.N. report finds But after holding an opening speech Monday, Ghani gave the chairmanship of the council to Abdul Rasool Sayyaf, a former warlord with past links to Osama bin Laden and the militants who took control of Kabul after the collapse of the communist government in the early 1990s. He is known for adhering to a strict interpretation of Islam, and refusing to meet with women. Still, the council expressed its support for women’s rights and said the country must not backtrack from the gains that women have made since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001 ousted the Taliban regime, which had harbored al-Qaida. Meanwhile, Khalilzad embarked on another round of talks with the Taliban Wednesday in Qatar, where the insurgents maintain a political office. Those talks are narrowly focused on U.S. troop withdrawal and Taliban guarantees that Afghanistan will not be used to stage global terrorist attacks. Earlier in the week, Khalilzad visited Pakistan and was also in Moscow, where a trilateral meeting that also included China issued a statement supporting U.S. efforts to find an end to the protracted Afghan war. Khalilzad on Wednesday also met Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Retno Marudi, who had met a day earlier with the Taliban chief negotiator, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the day earlier. Associated Press writer Kathy Gannon in Islamabad contributed to this report.<doc-sep>
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has opened a four-day Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, with more than 3,200 delegates seeking to agree on a common approach to peace talks with the Taliban. The Loya Jirga bringing together politicians, tribal elders, and other prominent figures was overshadowed by no-shows by several high-ranking officials, including Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, Ghani's partner in a unity government. President Ghani's special envoy, Omar Daudzai, said that delegates from Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan were among the participants of the gathering taking place under tight security in Kabul on April 29. Ghani told the gathering that he wanted to create a "unified stance" on peace. He called the participants "ambassadors of peace" in Afghanistan, and said the Loya Jirga delegates would determine the "direction" of the peace process. The Taliban has vowed that any decisions or resolutions made at the Loya Jirga are "never acceptable to the real and devout sons of this homeland." Taliban representatives have so far refused to negotiate with the government, calling it a puppet of the West, and have insisted on the withdrawal of foreign forces before talks with Kabul can begin. The United States has about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan as part of Resolute Support, a NATO-led mission that provides training and assistance to security forces in Afghanistan as they battle Taliban fighters and other extremist groups, including Islamic State extremists and Al-Qaeda. Last week, the United States, Russia, and China said in a joint statement that they had agreed on the goal of withdrawing foreign forces from Afghanistan and to seek an "inclusive Afghan-led" peace process. The Taliban now effectively controls or influences about half of the conflict-torn country. Dashing hopes for any quick cease-fire, the militant group announced the start of its annual spring offensive earlier in April, despite taking part in several rounds of talks with U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad. After several meetings with Taliban representatives in Qatar, Khalilzad has narrowed the gaps on a deal under which U.S. forces would withdraw in return for guarantees that Afghanistan will not revert to a haven for international terrorists. But he has struggled to get Afghans to agree on a road map for the country's future. A Loya Jirga is an ancient Afghan tradition that has been convened at times of national crisis or to settle major disputes. The most recent jirga was held in 2013, when the Afghan government endorsed a security agreement allowing U.S. troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond their planned withdrawal in 2014. With reporting by Tolo News, AP, AFP, and dpa