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Afghanistan
Afghan opposition holds talks in Maldives
2010-05-21
Afghan opposition figures held a final day of talks at a holiday resort in the Maldives on Friday, organised by a relative of the warlord and former Afghan premier Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.
An unhappy ex-warloard who can't throw a grenade like a man ...
The meeting at the Paradise tourist resort island began on Thursday and involved around 25 opposition representatives, an official Maldivian source told AFP. It was not immediately clear which groups were involved in the meeting, which was organised by Hekmatyar's son-in-law, Humayun Jarir.

Hekmatyar heads the radical Islamist group Hizb-e-Islami, and is currently wanted by the United States for participating in terrorist actions with Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

"What we understand is that they are trying to forge unity among themselves," the source said.

Initial reports said Afghan government officials and Taliban figures were participating, but Kabul denied sending any representatives to the meeting.

Maldivian President Mohammed Nasheed's office said it had helped with the gathering in the interest of peace in the region. "Afghanistan's stability affects the peace and security of our region. The government of Maldives supports efforts to bring a resolution to the conflict in Afghanistan," Nasheed's press secretary Mohamed Zuhair said.

The US State Department said it was aware of the Maldives talks.

"We continue to support efforts by the Afghan government to open the door to those Taliban who abandon violence and respect human rights of their fellow citizens," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said in Washington. "We are not saying they are a good thing or a bad thing. The real question is, what comes out of this."

The meeting comes ahead of a grand assembly, or "jirga", of Afghan tribal and community leaders, called by Afghan President Hamid Karzai and scheduled for later this month. Thousands of people are expected to attend the jirga to discuss the main issues facing the fractious country in the context of Karzai's plans to bring peace and development after more than eight years of war.
Posted by:tipper

#1  The TALIBS are now denying same, ala NEWS KERALA.

* SAME > 40,000 INDIANS "MISSING" IN MALAYSIA: MALAYS PM RAZAK. Decided to covertly stay on n Malaysia despite expiration of Govt-approv Tourist,Other Visa, etc.

* SAME > RAMAN SINGH: MAOISTS TARGET IS DELHI [control of Centre = Indian Economy], NOT DANTEWADA, + SINGH: MAOISTS ARE TERRORISTS.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2010-05-21 23:32  

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