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President Karzai opens Afghan "peace jirga"

Other News Materials 2 June 2010 10:24 (UTC +04:00)
Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday opened a peace assembly attended by hundreds of elders and lawmakers, who gathered in Kabul to discuss ways on how to reconcile with the Taliban.
President Karzai opens Afghan "peace jirga"

Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday opened a peace assembly attended by hundreds of elders and lawmakers, who gathered in Kabul to discuss ways on how to reconcile with the Taliban, DPA reported.

The assembly, known as a peace jirga, began with a recitation of the Koran and a speech by Karzai, who hopes to enlist support for his plan to offer incentives for the Taliban to end their insurgency.

Around 1,600 tribal elders, members of parliament and province councils and religious leaders are attending the three-day jirga. The participants are expected to debate the 36-page plan in small groups to produce a blueprint for talks with the Taliban.

The twice-delayed jirga has broad international support. British Prime Minister David Cameron and US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called Karzai on Tuesday to express their support for the peace initiative, the president's office said.

The Taliban are boycotting the jirga, which they said was aimed at safeguarding the interests of the US and other NATO members.

The assembly is scheduled to end on Friday.

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