Afghan Taliban delegation in Pak after ‘secret talks’

Kabul / AFP

An Afghan Taliban delegation arrived in Pakistan, militant sources said on Saturday, raising speculation over efforts to revive peace negotiations days after reports of secret talks with Afghan officials in Qatar.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed the delegation from the militants’ political office in Qatar had arrived in Pakistan, but ruled out any chance of peace talks. “Our delegation has travelled from Qatar to Pakistan to discuss the problem of Afghan refugees and some schools recently closed there,” he said.
“The reports that they are in Pakistan for peace talks is completely untrue.”
Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal, Afghanistan’s ambassador to Islamabad, said he was aware of the Taliban delegation’s visit but gave no further details. The visit follows reports that the militants have held two secret meetings with Afghan officials since September in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office. A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, but no representatives from Pakistan—the historical backers of the Taliban—were present.