Afghan president urges Taliban to give up fighting, join peace process

The time is running out and the Taliban will lose the chance for talks, says President Ashraf Ghani

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has once again urged the Taliban to give up fighting and join the peace process, Radio Pakistan reported.

“The time is running out and the Taliban will lose the chance for talks,” he said while addressing a news conference in Kabul on Tuesday.

President Ghani expressed hope that talks of Quadrilateral Coordination Group – which includes Pakistan,  Afghanistan, China and the United States – will resume soon to yield the desired results.



Earlier this month, the Afghan Presidential Palace had said that Afghanistan and Pakistan would conduct joint operations against terrorists and their safe havens along the Durand Line, TOLO News reported.

According to the Afghan authorities, the development came after US senators paid a visit to Pakistani military officials and assured Afghanistan that Islamabad, in coordination with Kabul, will conduct the joint operations.

On June 24, Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa stated that it was about time for the other stake holders particularly Afghanistan to do more in the fight against terrorism.

“Unfortunately our sacrifices against terrorism are not well acknowledged and we are often subjected to demand of do more,” the army chief was quoted as saying by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

He said that since 9/11, Pakistan is one of the few countries which have borne the brunt of terrorism and made monumental sacrifices to effectively neutralise the menace in its state territories.

Hinting at both India and Afghanistan’s involvement in the grisly bombing at the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan that killed over 75 people, Gen Qamar had stated that the army will show no restraint for anyone.

Days after the week of violence, Pakistan Army had launched Operation Raddul Fasaad across the country.