Taliban leader ‘favours political settlement’ to Afghan conflict
Al Jazeera
Announcement comes amid group’s military advances and as peace talks between Afghan gov’t and Taliban resume in Doha.
The Taliban’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhunzada has said he “strenuously favours” a political settlement to the conflict in Afghanistan even as the group launched a sweeping offensive across the nation. The announcement on Sunday comes as representatives of the Afghan government and Taliban armed fighters sat down for a new round of talks in Doha over the weekend, stirring hopes that the long-stalled peace talks were being resuscitated. “In spite of the military gains and advances, the Islamic Emirate [of Afghanistan] strenuously favours a political settlement in the country,” Akhunzada said in a message released ahead of next week’s Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.More Related News