“We call on countries inside and outside the region, especially Islamic countries, to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, lift all sanctions, stop freezing funds, and support Afghanistan’s development,” the statement said. In the statement, they did not respond to the international community’s demands from the Taliban, such as reopening girls’ secondary schools. But they declare that they will not interfere in neighboring countries and that neighboring countries, in turn, should not interfere in Afghanistan.
More than 4,000 men attended the three-day meeting in Kabul. The special meeting is called the Great Council (Loya Jirga), where the leaders of the Pashtun or Pashtun peoples make important decisions. The population is the largest in the country with 40 per cent Afghans. The Taliban is a Pashtun-dominated movement.
Afghan Taliban leader Hebatullah Akhundzadeh was also present. Akhundzada is rarely seen in the public eye and lives a very secluded life in the southern city of Kandahar. No one has seen him since Sunni Taliban extremists took power in August last year. In a speech Friday, the leader warned that foreigners should not give orders to Afghanistan.
