Afghan, Pakistan restart peace talks in Istanbul
Afghanistan and Pakistan have resumed peace talks in Istanbul, four sources familiar with the matter said, a day after Islamabad said the talks had failed.
The countries resumed talks on Thursday at the request of mediators Türkiye and Qatar, three of the sources said, in an effort to ensure that border clashes that have killed dozens of people this month do not continue.
One of the sources, a Pakistani security official, said Islamabad will raise its main demand in the talks that Afghanistan take action against Islamist militants who use its territory as a safe haven and plan attacks on Pakistani territory.
A source close to the Afghan Taliban delegation said, “Most of the issues between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been resolved successfully and peacefully. Some more time is needed as it is difficult to reach an agreement on several demands from Pakistan.”
Islamabad accuses the Taliban of harboring the Pakistani Taliban, a separate militant group hostile to Pakistan, and allowing them to attack Pakistani troops from Afghan territory. Cain denies this, saying he has no control over the group.
The sources declined to be named because they were not authorized to comment publicly on the matter.
The Afghan Taliban and Pakistan’s military and foreign office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In Kabul, Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, speaking in a video posted online at a meeting at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, called on Pakistan to resolve its own internal security problems rather than create tension in Afghanistan, warning that it would “cost them dearly”.
He said Afghanistan was trying to establish peaceful relations with all countries, but would defend itself if attacked. Haqqani stated that the Taliban has shown strength in both conflict and dialogue, adding that Afghanistan wants relations based on mutual respect.
Dozens of people have been killed on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan this month in the worst violence since the Taliban came to power in Kabul in 2021.
The October clashes began following Pakistani airstrikes earlier in the month on the Afghan capital Kabul, targeting the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, among other places.
The Afghan Taliban administration responded with attacks on Pakistani military outposts along the 2600 km border, which remained closed.
Both countries agreed on a ceasefire in Doha on October 19, but failed to find common ground in the second round of talks in Istanbul mediated by Turkey and Qatar, Afghan and Pakistani sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.
Clashes between the Pakistani army and the Pakistani Taliban continued throughout the ceasefire period, with many deaths reported on both sides on Sunday and Wednesday.
Pakistan said on Thursday it had killed the group’s deputy leader in an operation near the Afghan border; This was a victory for Islamabad in the insurgency it had been fighting for years.
Qari Amjad, who was described as a “high value target” by Pakistan and a terrorist by the USA, was killed in a conflict while trying to cross from Afghanistan to Pakistan. The militant group confirmed his death.
