The mujahideen across the country are ordered to continue their operations against the foreign invaders and their domestic stooges as usual The group repeated its demand for direct talks with the US and the withdrawal of foreign forces KABUL: Dozens of Afghans arrived in the capital on Monday after trekking across the country on foot calling for an end to the 17-year war. The Helmand Peace Convoy reached Kabul after traveling more than 700 km over nearly 40 days. The march began in the southern city of Lashkar Gah, most of it during the fasting month of Ramadan, in the Helmand province, an area largely under Taliban control. The marchers walked double file through the Afghan capital shouting “We want peace!” and “Stop fighting!” The peace march began with a group of nine men and picked up supporters during the long journey. They arrived in Kabul after a three-day holiday cease-fire brought rare calm to most of the country. The government had offered to extend the cease-fire for another 10 days, but Taliban refused to extend their three-day cease-fire beyond Sunday night despite pressure from ordinary people, the government and the international community. “We want our people to stay united for peace and get rid of this misery for the next generation,” Mohammad Naikzad, one of the marchers, told Tolo News. “I am calling on both sides — the government and the Taliban — for God’s sake... find a way for peace and reconciliation.” “Enough blood has been shed. So many people have been martyred in this ongoing conflict,” he told Tolo News. The peace march, believed to be the first of its kind in Afghanistan, grew out of a sit-in protest and hunger strike in Lashkar Gah, the capital of the southern province of Helmand which is a Taliban stronghold. That demonstration, which began spontaneously after a car bomb attack in the city on March 23, triggered similar movements by war-weary Afghans nationwide. But when the Taliban and security forces failed to heed their demands to stop fighting, some protesters decided to take their message directly to the country’s top leaders. Initially ridiculed for their plan to walk from Helmand to Kabul, the marchers now enjoy strong public support. They are calling for an extended cease-fire, peace talks and a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan — which is also a key demand of the Taliban. The Taliban announced Sunday they would not extend their cease-fire with Afghan police and troops despite describing the truce as “successful” and a demonstration that the militants were united. “The mujahideen across the country are ordered to continue their operations against the foreign invaders and their domestic stooges as usual,” the group said in a statement. The group also repeated its demand for direct talks with the US and the withdrawal of foreign forces. The first formal nationwide cease-fire since the 2001 US-led invasion had sparked extraordinary scenes of Taliban fighters, security forces and civilians happily celebrating the Eid Al-Fitr holiday together. But the jubilation appeared to alarm Taliban leaders, who on Sunday ordered their fighters to stay at their posts or in areas under their control. Some people took to social media to express disappointment and anger at the Taliban’s refusal to extend the truce. “Once again, they have shown that they love shedding the blood of innocent Afghans,” Madena Momad wrote on Facebook. Another user wrote: “The Taliban have no respect for the norms and lives of Afghan people.”