US, Afghanistan agree on draft security pact

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Afghan President Hamid Karzai have agreed on key elements of a deal that, if completed, would keep American troops in Afghanistan beyond next year. Making the announcement on Saturday evening after nearly 24 hours of talks and meetings, Kerry and Karzai said one major issue remained: legal jurisdiction, or immunity from prosecution under Afghan law, for American troops who remain in Afghanistan after 2014. The agreement will be up to the country's Loya Jirga, an assembly of elders, leaders and other influential people, to decide whether to accept it. "We have high confidence that the people of Afghanistan will see the benefits of this agreement," Kerry said. "But we need to say that if the issue of jurisdiction cannot be resolved, then, unfortunately, there cannot be a bilateral security agreement." "Tonight we reached some sort of agreements," Karzai told a news conference. U.S. officials said they wanted the pact finalized by the end of October and Kerry's visit was seen as a last-ditch effort to push the deal through before the deadline.