Fazl pledges to revive govt-TTP talks

KABUL:

JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday met with Afghanistan’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada in Kabul wherein it was assured that the next elections in Pakistan would be held peacefully and efforts would be made for the resumption of Islamabad’s talks with the banned outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The Afghan government also demanded that Islamabad would have to play its role in the elimination of Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) as well as chalk out a visa-free policy on the Chaman border alongside a soft plan on the expulsion of its refugees.

Kandahar Governor Mullah Shirin Akhund had promised a meeting of Haibatullah with the JUI-F chief on his visit to Kabul, but declined a huddle with other delegates.

Fazl and Haibatullah discussed the TTP, ISKP, border management, soft visa policy, and refugees during their one-on-one meeting.

The JUI-F chief promised that he would take up the issues of Kabul with the relevant quarters in Islamabad, but pressed the sureties of a ceasefire till peaceful elections in Pakistan, a source said.

The meeting was scheduled by former Kandahar governor Haji Yousuf Wafa. He is currently the governor of the Balkh province.

The source confirmed that Fazl took flight to Kandahar later in the day accompanied by Mullah Idrees and met with some members of the former Quetta Shura.

The overall visit of Fazl will bring a positive impact on the tense relationship between the two neighbouring countries. Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been simmering for months over Kabul’s failure to stop the TTP-sponsored attacks from across the border.

Soon a short-term ceasefire with the TTP will be announced or there will be an unannounced one between the two sides.

Sources from the delegation also confirmed that a meeting of Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group is also on the agenda.

It has also been learnt that a day might also be added to the unannounced period of the JUI-F chief’s visit to Afghanistan.

Many Afghan Taliban members including those who are in the government have studied from seminaries run by the JUI-F. Observers believe that Pakistan may use the influence of the JUI-F chief to sort out the issue of the TTP.

An 11-member delegation, headed by the JUI-F chief, and including former South Waziristan MNA Maulana Jamaluddin Mehsud, Mufti Ibrar and members from the Haqqani religious seminary, are in Afghanistan since January 7.

Despite repeated attempts, the JUI-F spokesperson, who otherwise had been giving regular updates about Fazl’s engagements in Afghanistan, could not be reached.

The Afghan Taliban chief rarely meets leaders from outside. This was the only second known meeting he held with any foreign leader following his interaction with the Qatari Prime Minister last year.

The meeting could be a turning point in the bilateral ties between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban government. The two governments are at loggerheads over the issue of banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Sources familiar with the development said Maulana Fazl was given a brief and talking points about Pakistan’s stance before he traveled to Afghanistan. The sources said Maulana Fazl was told to convey a clear message to the Taliban chief that Kabul had to choose between Pakistan and the TTP.

The JUI-F chief was also told to inform the Taliban chief that without resolution of the TTP problem bilateral relationship could not move forward.

The Afghan Taliban government has so far not given any indication to take on the TTP. In fact, Maulana Fazl was told during a meeting with the Afghan Interim Prime Minister that the TTP was an internal problem of Pakistan and that it should find a solution from within.

One source, who deals with the Afghan issue, said if this was an attitude of the Taliban government then there won’t be any breakthrough. The source said the Taliban government was well aware that the TTP and its leadership were in Afghanistan. They had the “sanctuaries” and this was also corroborated by the UN and other countries, according to sources.

The JUI-F chief wanted to travel to Kabul to congratulate the Afghan Taliban for their return to power in August 2021 but he could not due to various reasons.

The sources, nevertheless, claimed that the Afghan Taliban, earlier, were not keen to extend him the invitation. Since Pakistan virtually severed high-level contacts with the Kabul regime, the Afghan Taliban decided to invite Maulana Fazl to share its perspective on the TTP and other issues.

Officials are skeptical about any major breakthrough because of the close links between the Afghan Taliban and the TTP. The visit may lower the temperature between the two sides but the prospects of any major headway are slim, according to sources.

Pakistani policymakers would now be waiting for the JUI-F chief’s briefing on his return to know what exactly transpired in his meeting with the Taliban supreme leader.

Some observers see the meeting as a last ditch effort to sort out the issue of TTP.With additional input from Kamran Yousaf in Islamabad