A senior Taliban member based in Pakistan confirmed that a delegation of leaders was in the southern port city of Karachi, holding talks with Pakistani officials.
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Diplomatic sources say the Taliban delegation is on a mission for “exploratory discussions” as part of Islamabad’s efforts to facilitate peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
Pakistan, however, said in 2013 that he had been released along with some 50 senior Taliban leaders in 2013 on the request by then Afghan president Hamid Karzai. But an increase in Taliban violence, including an attack last week in the heart of the Afghan capital, Kabul, that left at least 64 people dead and more than 300 wounded, has forced Ghani to effectively end what has been a cornerstone effort of his presidency.
The comments on Tuesday followed the arrival of a Qatari-based Taliban delegation in Pakistan to meet Pakistani officials.
Eight Taliban suicide bombers were killed when one of their bombs blew up prematurely, triggering other devices as well, in Nahar Kohna village, in the north Afghanistan province of Kunduz.
President Ashraf Ghani’s speech after the attack, at the Afghan parliament on Monday, squared the blame on Pakistan for not doing enough to curb militancy.
Last month, the Taliban had ruled out participating in peace talks sponsored by the quadrilateral group of Pakistan, Afghanistan, the United States and China due to the presence of foreign troops in the country.
Taliban’s Qatar office confirmed the visit; however, it did not say whether the leaders will discuss the peace process during their visit.
The death toll in Kabul, of course, is not ordinary and tolerable; yet, linking it with Pakistan’s inability to crackdown on the Haqqani network and the Taliban can have severe implications for bilateral ties.
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“Pakistan hosted the first round of direct talks between Afghan government and Taleban but Pakistan alone is not responsible for bringing the Taleban back to the negotiating table”, he maintained. The spokesman said peace in the neighbouring country is in the interest of Pakistan. “But we can’t negotiate on behalf of the Afghan government because we cannot offer them what the Afghan government can offer them”. Pointing fingers will also not help efforts against the growing and palpable threat of the Islamic State, which is fast emerging within the geographical boundaries of Afghanistan and continuing to gain support in some quarters of Pakistan.
