Karzai plan answered with rocket attack

KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai launched an ambitious peace plan on Wednesday that he hopes will persuade Taliban fighters to lay down their arms, but the insurgents demonstrated their disdain by firing a rocket as he addressed a traditional gathering in the capital.

Unpopular at home despite an election victory last year that was mired in controversy, Karzai called a "jirga" of tribal leaders, elders and other notables to forge national consensus for overtures to the Taliban.

But minutes after he began unveiling his plans, a rocket landed in an open field near the giant marquee where the event was being held.