Afghan Loya Jirga

A traditional Afghan national assembly on Saturday endorsed President Hamid Karzai's decision to negotiate a long-term security pact with the U.S. but imposed some conditions, including an end to unpopular night raids by military forces searching for insurgents.A nonbinding resolution issued at the end of the Loya Jirga assembly backed an initiative from the president to negotiate a pact that will govern the presence of U.S. troops after 2014, when most international forces are to have left or moved into support roles.The jirga's findings are consultative and Karzai does not need the jirga's permission to broker a pact, but he wanted its approval to strengthen his position at the talks.They are likely to bolster Karzai's negotiating position with the United States during talks that are currently under way for a written U.S-Afghan agreement, which the U.S. calls a Strategic Partnership Document.The more than 2,000 people who attended the four-day meeting asked him to ensure that the Uni...

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