Al Jazeera understands negotiations are underway between tribal leaders and Nato commanders in the Panjawi district of Afghanistan, one of the most troubled places in the country. A similar deal was recently struck with the British in the neighbouring town of Musakala in the southern province of Kandahar. Nato pulled back from Musakala a month ago. Exclusive Al Jazeera pictures showed the damage caused by heavy fighting and bombing before British troops reached a deal with tribal elders. There are now no sign of Taliban forces in the town. Nobody knows exactly how many people died when Panjawi was bombed. Some say as many as 80. Nato acknowledged that many were civilians. Tribal elders in Panjawi say they now want a deal similar to the one in Musakala.
Jan Mohammed, an adviser to the Afghan president on tribal affairs, said he was strongly against such agreements. "Leaving that district to Taliban means changing that district to a Taliban stronghold, to a Taliban centre," he said. "Step by step the Taliban will go to other districts and demand the same thing and will keep demanding the same thing. That is the TalibanÂ’s main goalÂ…to get foreign forces out."