Kabul, May 3
A five-day summit on peace in Afghanistan ended on Friday with a call for an urgent ceasefire and a schedule for a proposed withdrawal of foreign troops from the war-torn country.
The Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, set out its recommendations and urged the government and the Taliban to “announce an immediate and permanent ceasefire with the arrival of Ramadan”, reports Efe news.
Asking the Taliban to shun violence, the council called on the warring groups to begin “intra-Afghan talks”.
President Ashraf Ghani inaugurated the meeting on Monday. It saw about 3,200 ethnic, religious and tribal representatives and politicians from across the country gather in the capital city under heavy security cover.
At the end of the five-day consultations, the participants issued a 23-article resolution to Ghani and called on the government, the Taliban, the international community and regional countries to “respect the recommendations of the peace jirga”.
They said the constitution and the current political structure of the government should be “maintained and protected” and, if necessary, amendments be brought in only through legal ways. — IANS
Goodwill gesture: To set free 175 Taliban prisoners
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Friday announced the release of 175 Taliban prisoners as a goodwill gesture as a five-day summit on peace ended here with a call for an urgent ceasefire and a schedule for a proposed withdrawal of foreign troops from the war-torn country
30 militants, seven security personnel killed in clash
At least 30 militants were killed as the Taliban offensive to overrun Afghanistan’s Burka district in Baghlan province was repulsed on Friday, officials said. A provincial government spokesman said a group of Taliban insurgents launched an offensive to overrun Burka district but the security forces killed 30 insurgents
from The Tribune http://bit.ly/2Jf6zwW
via Today’s News Headlines
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