New peace push in jeopardy as TTP refuses to budge on reversal of FATA merger

PESHAWAR:

Chief of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud, has said that while peace talks with Pakistani negotiators are ongoing, the group will not budge on its key demand for the reversal of erstwhile FATA’s merger with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

The TTP is a banned umbrella group of terrorist outfits which currently operates out of its safe haven inside Afghanistan. It has claimed credit for most terrorist attacks in Pakistan since its inception in 2007.

In an interview uploaded to popular video-sharing website Youtube, the TTP chief alleged that the negotiation process is being threatened by continuing raids and arrests of TTP men by Pakistani security forces

Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud took over as TTP chief following the death of his predecessor, Mullah Fazlullah – nicknamed Mullah Radio – in a US drone attack inside Afghanistan in 2018.

The talks are being held with the Afghan Taliban acting as mediators. The TTP is represented by Mehsud and the Pakistani side is represented by the Peshawar corps commander, claimed the leader of the proscribed group.

He further said that only "rational demands" from the Pakistani side would be accepted, referring to Islamabad's demand of laying down arms and accepting the Constitution. He added that "uncalled for demands" will not be accepted.

When asked whether the TTP had suffered losses in recent attacks, Mehsud declined to reveal details. He, however, admitted infighting within the TTP saying that attacks against Pakistan and its interests were due to the group’s restructuring and internal struggles between members of the group.

Read Sanaullah says TTP’s FATA demand against Constitution

He sought to dismiss the notion that the Afghan Taliban had persuaded Pakistan to restart negotiations. The TTP chief stated that if the talks failed, it would be “natural” for war to be waged by both sides.

The TTP chief called the reversal of FATA merger as a central demand of the outlawed group. “The success of the talks mainly relies on Pakistan, if they show seriousness and remove hurdles in meeting our demands, it could be successful”.

Referring to the demand by the PPP to have the dialogue process approved by parliament, the TTP leader said the two sides had already finalised their demands and added that the issue was not of concern to the TTP. "We know that the security forces are the real power centre in the state of Pakistan,” the chief of the banned organisation stated.

When asked about the Army Public School (APS) massacre, the TTP leader stated that an independent inquiry should be carried out as the militant group was not involved.

Nearly 150 pupils and staff members were slaughtered when six terrorists armed to the teeth rampaged through the military-run school in Peshawar on Dec 16, 2014 in an attack that united the nation against the scourge of terrorism.

Interestingly, while Mehsud calls for inquiry, his predecessor, Mullah Fazlullah, had proudly claimed responsibility for the sickening massacre, with his spokesperson calling it as revenge for the military operation in North Waziristan. “We want them to feel our pain,” the spokesman, Muhammad Khalid Khorasani, said in a statement.

Mehsud also said that as Pakistan had used diplomatic sources to place the group on international terrorist lists, the country was responsible for ensuring their freedom of movement if the negotiations were successful.