PESHAWAR: The head of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council, Mohammad Daudzai, will arrive in Pakistan next week to meet with senior Pakistani officials and push forward peace talks with the Taliban, his spokesperson said on Wednesday.
Afghanistan and the US have long pushed Pakistan to use its influence with the Taliban to bring them to the table for talks to end the 17-year war.
Sayed Ihsan Taheri, council spokesman, told Arab News that Daudzai would be in Pakistan “next week to hold talks with Pakistani officials on regional issues,” but declined to specify an exact date.
Taheri said Daudzai would exchange views with Pakistani officials regarding developments in Taliban peace talks and his government’s position on the latest efforts to bring the militants to the negotiating table.
“Pakistan can prove significant in promoting peace parlays,” Taheri said.
Zardasht Shams, the deputy head of mission at the Afghan embassy in Islamabad, told Arab News he had no details yet of Daudzai’s visit.
“A date for the meeting has yet to be set,” he said.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs could not be reached for comment.
Daudzai’s visit comes amid intensified efforts toward peace negotiations in Afghanistan.
Last month, representatives from the Taliban, the US and regional countries met for talks in the UAE. So far, the Taliban has refused to hold formal talks with the Afghan government, which they consider an illegitimate foreign-appointed regime.
The groups says it will first reach an agreement with the US, which it sees as the main force in Afghanistan since US-led forces toppled the Taliban government in 2001.
The US, on the other hand, insists any final settlement must be led by the Afghans.
Representatives from the Taliban’s Qatar office have recently attended peace talks in China, Germany, France and other countries. Last Sunday, Iran confirmed a Taliban delegation visited Tehran to advance peace talks in the neighboring country.
Hikmat Safi, an adviser to Afghanistan’s Chief Executive, Abdullah Abdullah, said Daudzai’s planned visit to Islamabad was of paramount importance because Afghan peace talks had recently gained considerable momentum. He said Afghans expected a “cease-fire” in the country after the meeting scheduled between the Taliban and the US in Saudi Arabia next month.
Last week, the Taliban rejected Kabul’s offer of talks in Saudi Arabia.
The Pakistan army has thrown its support behind the latest US efforts for a political settlement and urged Washington to retain Kabul as a friend in the region rather than a “failure.”
“We will facilitate talks as much as we can,” Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor, army spokesman, told reporters last month.
Head of Afghan peace council due in Pakistan next week
Head of Afghan peace council due in Pakistan next week
- Daudzai will ‘discuss Taliban peace talks with Pakistani officials’
- Afghan embassy says there are no details into Daudzai’s trip as yet
Fourth Palestine Action activist ends hunger strike in UK prison
- Amy Gardiner-Gibson began eating again after 49 days of protest
- Govt rejects claims it ignored prison safety protocols
LONDON: A fourth Palestine Action activist imprisoned in the UK has ended her hunger strike.
Amy Gardiner-Gibson, who also uses the name Amu Gib, began eating again after 49 days of fasting, the campaign group Prisoners for Palestine said.
Qesser Zuhrah, another activist, ended her hunger strike last week after 48 days but said she might resume it next year, Sky News reported.
Four Palestine Action activists have now ended their hunger strikes while in prison, while four others are continuing to fast.
All of them are in prison on remand, awaiting trial for a series of high-profile alleged break-ins and criminal damage.
Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist organization and banned earlier this year.
On Tuesday, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested in central London at a rally in support of the hunger strikers.
The protesters are demanding that weapons factories in Britain with ties to Israel be shut down, as well as the removal of Palestine Action’s proscription.
They are also calling for immediate bail to be given to imprisoned pro-Palestine activists and an end to the alleged mistreatment of prisoners in custody.
Seven imprisoned members of Palestine Action have been transferred to hospital over the course of the hunger strike campaign. Doctors have highlighted concerns about the long-term impact of fasting on the activists.
Lawyers representing the group on Monday initiated legal action against the government over its alleged failure to follow prison safety regulations.
The government, however, has rejected this accusation, Sky News reported.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Ministers do not intervene in individual cases. Where individuals are on remand, doing so would risk prejudicing ongoing legal proceedings and undermine the independence of the justice system.
“Concerns about welfare and process can be raised through established legal and administrative channels, including prison governors and ultimately the prison and probation ombudsman.
“Healthcare decisions are taken independently by qualified NHS professionals and appropriate care and oversight frameworks remain in place.”
The activists still on hunger strike include Heba Muraisi and Teuta Hoxha. Hoxha has been on remand for 13 months and her family told Sky News they feared she would die in prison.
Another of the activists, Kamran Ahmad, is believed to have been on hunger strike for 45 days and hospitalized three times.
Lewie Chiaramello, who has Type 1 diabetes, is on day 31 of his strike and taking part by fasting every other day.
