The anticipated gathering of clerics from across Afghanistan was held in Kabul on Thursday to discuss the current Afghan situation.  

It was attended by Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund and other top members of the Islamic Emirate as well as thousands of clerics from across the country.

“The problems with the Islamic Emirate will be solved through engagement. If we don’t join hands, it doesn’t matter from which language and tribe--the enemy is monitoring us,” Mullah Hassan Akhund said.  

During the meeting, the sound of gunfire was heard near the gathering in Kabul and sporadic gunfire can also be heard in a video circulating on social media. 

However, Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, tweeted that "there are no problems around the gathering, and security forces fired several shots at a suspicious location." 

Speaking to the assembly, Prime Minister Mullah Hassan Akhund said there are problems that the Islamic Emirate is trying to solve, and "the enemy" -- inside or outside the country -- must know it will be prevented from causing disruptions in Afghanistan. 

Also speaking at the gathering, Nasrullah Waezi, a representative from Bamiyan, called for the reopening of girls’ schools above the 6th grade and for "acceptance, intimacy and brotherhood" among citizens. 

“I offer that there should be efforts to form the mechanism which was pledged to the people about reopening schools for our sisters and mothers,” he said. 

Waezi criticized the freezing of Afghanistan's foreign assets and argued that the funds should be released since they belong to the Afghan people.

The participants of the gathering provided various opinions and some remarks were very strong, such as Mawlawi Mujeeb Rahman Ansari calling for the beheading of those who oppose the current government.

“There are three major problems in this gathering.The people of Afghanistan do not know what is going on in the gathering and there is a vacuum of information,” said Mehdi Afzali, an international relations analyst.