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ISLAMABAD (AP) – The Taliban leader said on Sunday his movement was determined to reach a political settlement to end decades of war in Afghanistan, even as insurgents fight in dozens of districts across the country to gain territory.
Maulawi Hibatullah Akhunzada’s statement came as Taliban leaders met with a high-level Afghan government delegation in the Gulf State of Qatar to revive stalled peace talks. The Kabul delegation includes Government No. 2 Abdullah Abdullah, head of the Afghan National Reconciliation Council.
Talks resumed on Saturday, ahead of the four-day Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which is expected to start Tuesday in many parts of the world. A second session was to take place on Sunday afternoon.
Washington’s envoy for peace, Zalmay Khalilzad, who is in Qatar, had previously expressed hope for a reduction in violence and possibly a ceasefire on Eid al-Adha.
Akhundzada said that “despite military gains and advances, the Islamic Emirate vigorously promotes a political settlement in the country and all opportunities for the establishment of an Islamic system.”
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is the name the Taliban gave their government when they ruled the country for five years, until they were ousted by a US-led coalition in 2001.
Still, there are few signs of a political agreement on the horizon. Battles between the Taliban and government forces continue in dozens of provinces, and thousands of Afghans are applying for visas in the hope of leaving the country. Most fear that the final withdrawal of US and NATO troops after nearly 20 years could plunge their war-torn nation into even deeper chaos. With the US withdrawal over 95% complete, Afghanistan’s future appears mired in uncertainty.
Militias with a brutal history have been resurrected to fight the Taliban, but their loyalty goes to their commanders, many of whom are warlords allied to the United States with ethnic backing.
This has raised the specter of deepening divisions among Afghanistan’s many ethnic groups. Most of the Taliban are ethnically Pashtun, and in the past there has been brutal retaliation by one ethnic group against another.
As a sign of the little progress made in the negotiations, the two sides are still arguing over terminology, unable even to agree on the name of the nation tortured by war. The Taliban insist on the Islamic emirate of Afghanistan. Kabul wants the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Akhunzada’s declaration demanded an Islamic system without explaining what that meant.
He promised to support education, but for girls he said “the Islamic Emirate. . . strive to create an appropriate environment for the education of women within the framework of the sublime Islamic law.
He did not say how this differed from educational institutions that have been established over the past 20 years and whether women would be free to work outside their homes and move around freely without being accompanied by a male parent.
He said the Taliban ordered their commanders to treat civilians with care and protect institutions and infrastructure. Yet reports have emerged from areas controlled by the Taliban that schools have been set on fire, women have been confined to their homes, and some government buildings have been destroyed.
The Taliban denied reports of such destruction, saying the images released were old and accused the government of engaging in disinformation and propaganda.
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