ianstone
09-29-2010, 09:44 AM
New Afghan peace council seeks Taliban talks
Deb Riechmann, Associated Press
The Associated Press September 29, 2010 04:00 AM Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL#license-/c/a/2010/09/28/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL) http://analytics.apnewsregistry.com/analytics/v2/image.svc/AP/RWS/www.sfgate.com/MAI/ca20100929MN4L1FKV4I.DTL/E/Prod Wednesday, September 29, 2010
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Shah Marai / AFP/Getty Images
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said he would talk to insurgents who renounce violence and sever ties to terrorists.
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(09-29) 04:00 PDT Kabul -- In a move to find a political solution to the war, the Afghan government (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Politics_of_Afghanistan) on Tuesday set up a 70-member peace council, formalizing efforts already under way to reconcile with top Taliban (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Taliban) leaders and lure insurgent foot soldiers off the battlefield.
A political resolution to the 9-year war is a key to any U.S. (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/United_States) exit strategy in Afghanistan (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Afghanistan). Still, leaders of ethnic minorities, including some named to the peace council, remain concerned that negotiating with the Taliban will open a path for the hard-line fundamentalist group to regain power.
President Hamid Karzai (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Hamid_Karzai) has long said he will talk to insurgents who renounce violence, sever ties to terrorists and embrace the Afghan Constitution. Publicly, the Taliban have responded, saying they won't negotiate until foreign troops leave the country, yet there are many indications that backdoor discussions have occurred.
Waheed Omar, spokesman for Karzai, said the new High Council for Peace will guide future contacts with Taliban leaders who have reached out directly or through back channels to the highest levels of the government.
Omar denied that President Obama's announced goal to start withdrawing U.S. forces (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/United_States_armed_forces) from Afghanistan in July 2011, if conditions allow, spurred the Afghan government to set up the council or reach out to the Taliban.
"For the people of Afghanistan, peace is a need and we want to pursue it in any case," Omar said.
The announcement of the peace council also officially kicked off a nationwide program to lure Taliban foot soldiers off the battlefield. The plan, which is just starting to be developed across the nation, seeks to attract 25,000 to 35,000 fighters with promises of jobs, literacy and vocational training, plus development aid for their villages.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL#ixzz10vShupzQ
Deb Riechmann, Associated Press
The Associated Press September 29, 2010 04:00 AM Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL#license-/c/a/2010/09/28/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL) http://analytics.apnewsregistry.com/analytics/v2/image.svc/AP/RWS/www.sfgate.com/MAI/ca20100929MN4L1FKV4I.DTL/E/Prod Wednesday, September 29, 2010
http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2010/09/28/ba-afghan29_PH_0502306750.jpg (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL&o=0)http://imgs.sfgate.com/graphics/article/articlebox_img_bg.gif
Shah Marai / AFP/Getty Images
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said he would talk to insurgents who renounce violence and sever ties to terrorists.
http://imgs.sfgate.com/graphics/utils/plus-green.gif View Larger Image (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL&o=0)
<LI style="DISPLAY: none" id=rl_news_rl_last_row>
(09-29) 04:00 PDT Kabul -- In a move to find a political solution to the war, the Afghan government (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Politics_of_Afghanistan) on Tuesday set up a 70-member peace council, formalizing efforts already under way to reconcile with top Taliban (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Taliban) leaders and lure insurgent foot soldiers off the battlefield.
A political resolution to the 9-year war is a key to any U.S. (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/United_States) exit strategy in Afghanistan (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Afghanistan). Still, leaders of ethnic minorities, including some named to the peace council, remain concerned that negotiating with the Taliban will open a path for the hard-line fundamentalist group to regain power.
President Hamid Karzai (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/Hamid_Karzai) has long said he will talk to insurgents who renounce violence, sever ties to terrorists and embrace the Afghan Constitution. Publicly, the Taliban have responded, saying they won't negotiate until foreign troops leave the country, yet there are many indications that backdoor discussions have occurred.
Waheed Omar, spokesman for Karzai, said the new High Council for Peace will guide future contacts with Taliban leaders who have reached out directly or through back channels to the highest levels of the government.
Omar denied that President Obama's announced goal to start withdrawing U.S. forces (http://topics.sfgate.com/topics/United_States_armed_forces) from Afghanistan in July 2011, if conditions allow, spurred the Afghan government to set up the council or reach out to the Taliban.
"For the people of Afghanistan, peace is a need and we want to pursue it in any case," Omar said.
The announcement of the peace council also officially kicked off a nationwide program to lure Taliban foot soldiers off the battlefield. The plan, which is just starting to be developed across the nation, seeks to attract 25,000 to 35,000 fighters with promises of jobs, literacy and vocational training, plus development aid for their villages.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2010/09/29/MN4L1FKV4I.DTL#ixzz10vShupzQ