Following the end of parliamentary elections, President Ashraf Ghani says the nation proved to the Taliban that they will not give up and will participate in the democratic process despite the threats being imposed by the militant group.

Thanking the nation in a video message on Sunday, Ghani said that by casting their vote, Afghans have shown to the world that they do not want violence but have the will for democracy.

“You have proved your will for democracy and to the Taliban that the nations cannot be contained by force,” he said, adding despite the Taliban threats, the people did not give up and voted in the elections.

Ghani said the participation of women in the elections as candidates and voters was a historic win for Afghanistan’s democracy.

The president also thanked the military forces and the government institutions for their cooperation in the election process.

He said the security incidents were far less in this elections compared to two previous rounds of presidential elections in the country.

 “We are thankful of the efforts of the defense and security forces who have made his possible,” Ghani said.

This comes as about four million people (67 percent male and 33 percent female) out of over 8.5 million registered voters cast their ballots in the parliamentary elections which were lasted for two days in 32 provinces of the country.