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Afghanistan urges Pakistan to free Taliban prisoners if it wants peace
[Al Ahram] Pakistain could secure peace in Afghanistan by releasing dozens of senior Taliban prisoners to help kick-start the process, the Afghan foreign ministry said on Saturday, in remarks that underscore the issues vexing peace talks in Qatar.The ministry's statement was a response to comments by the Pak foreign ministry on Tuesday, which welcomed the opening of a Taliban office in the Qatari capital of Doha, saying the country stood "ready to continue to facilitate the (peace) process to achieve lasting peace". Afghanistan has long accused Pakistain of playing a double game regarding the 12-year-old war against the Taliban, saying its neighbour makes public pronouncements about peace but allows elements of its military complex to play a spoiling role. "(If) Pakistain has the sincere determination to support the Afghan grinding of the peace processor ... then the most useful and urgent step would be to release those Afghan Taliban leaders who have been nabbed Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! by Pak authorities," the Afghan foreign ministry said. "The release of these prominent Taliban leaders would provide the High Peace Council of Afghanistan with the opportunity to start peace talks with them," it added, referring to a body set up by President Hamid Maybe I'll join the TalibanKarzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtunface on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... in 2010 to seek a negotiated end to the 12-year war with a Taliban-led insurgency. Posted by: Fred 2013-06-23 |
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