A retired supermodel has suggested yoga as a means to persuade Afghan insurgents to lay down arms, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Cameron Alborzian sat with Major General Phil Jones at US-led coalition headquarters in Kabul to discuss how yoga and meditation could unite Afghan militants and western troops.
"The achievement would be: American soldiers meditate, Taliban meditate and in jails they meditate together," Alborzian told the Journal.
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"One is on one side of the bar, the other is on the other side of the bar. You are both in jail—and you can find the peace in it together."
The former model's proposal has garnered attention from all sides, with Alborzian securing meetings with senior coalition officers, Afghan ministers and even a one-time insurgent leader.
The 44-year-old's vision has opened doors at Afghan prisons, where Alborzian and his Kabul-based representative have taught guards to do basic, non-religious Ayurvedic yoga poses.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the pair have even managed to secretly teach a former Taliban commander how to meditate and soothe his militant mind.
Analysts have hailed the spiritual approach to ending the decade-long Afghan war as good as any.
"It sounds a bit crazy…but who can't be supportive of someone that wants to teach the principles of nonviolence?" president of the International Council on Security Development Norine MacDonald told the Journal.
