PAKTIA (TOLO News): As the debates on peace and a future system in Afghanistan increases among Afghans around the country, a former Taliban member of the Taliban, Sayed Akbar Agha, said that the group “should not” insist on the reestablishment of an Islamic emirate system in the country as part of the peace process and that instead they should enter direct talks with the Afghan government.
Speaking at a gathering in Gardez city, the center of Paktia province in eastern Afghanistan, he also called on the Afghan government to show flexibility in talks with the Taliban so that the ground is paved for bringing sustainable peace in the country.
“They (Taliban) should not insist on the emirate system,” Akbar Agha reiterated. “Both the Taliban and the government should move forward as Afghans. Those who go there (Doha meeting) as politicians, should forget that they had an enmity with the Taliban.”
He said that a timeline for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan should be finalized and then the Taliban and the Afghan government should enter into face-to-face talks.
Other participants of the event, meanwhile, said that it is the time to end the conflict in Afghanistan.
“We should not give the world the chance when the foreigners withdraw. We should sit among ourselves. Both the Taliban and the Army are brothers, so they should sit together and talk,” said Gulzar, a tribal elder in Paktia.
“If an interim government is designated for peace, then we don’t need the incumbent government,” claimed Abdullah, a tribal elder in Paktia.
This comes after new developments on the peace efforts which include the formation the Reconciliation Leadership Council chaired by President Ashraf Ghani which according to officials will create a unified stance on the Afghan peace.
