Afghan reconciliation: Taliban appoint Qatar office boss

Kabul welcomes reports of revival of stalled peace talks

ISLAMABAD:

The Afghan Taliban leadership council has appointed a top negotiator, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, as head of the political office in Qatar to bring the stalled peace talks back on track.

Stanekzai and a majority of the members of the political office had declared allegiance to Mullah Mansoor amid controversy over the new leadership. The Taliban’s new supremo, Mullah Akhtar Mansoor, has gained full leverage over the group. The Taliban office in Qatar, led by Tayyeb Agha, had disassociated itself from the Pakistan-brokered talks in early July because of its differences with Mullah Mansoor. Agha had also opposed the negotiations held in the Chinese city of Urumqi earlier this year.

Taliban sources told The Express Tribune that the leadership had tried to convince Agha into continuing as head of the political office but he refused to do so.

Abbas Stanekzai was the founding member of the Qatar office. He was later appointed as deputy to Tayyeb Agha. Believed to be aged between 55 and 60 years, Stanekzai is a former member of the Harkat-e-Inqilab-e-Islami of Muhammad Nabi.



Sources privy to the Taliban in Qatar told The Express Tribune that though the overseas office is closed, Taliban negotiators continue to be based there.

A former Taliban minister told The Express Tribune that the acting Afghan defence minister, Masoom Stanekzai, could travel to Doha for “informal interaction” with the head of the political office.

As part of the new appointments, Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, justice minister during the Taliban rule, has been appointed as head of Dawat-e-Jalbwa Jazb Commission that is mandated to contact and lure the government security personnel and employees into joining the Taliban.

Kabul welcomes talks revival

Afghanistan has cautiously welcomed reports about the revival of the stalled peace talks following an agreement between Pakistan and the United States. Deputy presidential spokesman Zafar Hashmi, however, said that the peace talks will be “meaningless if Pakistan does not take action against those groups who have imposed war on the Afghans”.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 24^th, 2015.