Kabul, Afghanistan -- Suspected militants fired rockets, detonated explosives and engaged in an intense gun battle with security forces Wednesday near the site of a jirga, or peace meeting, where Afghan President Hamid Karzai spoke.
Karzai carried on with his speech even after explosions could be heard. Shortly afterward, a large convoy of cars and security vehicles was seen leaving the area. It was unclear if Karzai was in that convoy but police said Karzai did leave the gathering after his speech.
Even then, gun battle continued in the neighborhoods around the meeting site, said Kabul police official Mohammed Zahir.
And one rocket landed hit a few feet short of the outer fence of the meeting site.
Police later said they had surrounded a home in Kabul where suspected insurgents, believed to be responsible for the attack, were holed up. Police were waiting for more officers before they raided the home.
Karzai planned the critical peace gathering with tribal leaders to discuss a reintegration plan for Taliban members who renounce violence and lay down their arms.
But persuading the Taliban to do that - and the process with which to accomplish it - has raised more questions than answers, experts said.
And it has also raised fears about the insurgents wanting to attack the gathering.
"It's not clear whether there's a serious common ground between Karzai and his enemies," said Paul Staniland, who studies international security and insurgent groups at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "All of the reconciliation plans have been somewhat vague about what the ultimate end state is."
