Taliban members meet top leader in Quetta over US deal

Kabul, Dec 26 (IANS) Taliban members met the group's top leader Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada in the Pakistani city of Quetta, during which they discussed a potential ceasefire with the US, a media report said.A delegation from the Taliban's office in Doha also participated at the meeting so that it could brief the US side in Doha about a final decision on the ceasefire, TOLO News said in the report on Wednesday citing informed sources as saying."Discussions are underway to decide whether the ceasefire will be a short term or a permanent one, however a final decision has yet to be taken," said Sayed Akbar Agha, a former Taliban commander.Meanwhile a source familiar with the talks in Doha has said that the US has told the Taliban that it would not sign a peace agreement unless a deal was reached on a ceasefire and the reduction of violence.Meanwhile in Kabul, the Afghan government is also trying to finalize a peace-negotiating delegation as part of efforts to broker the intra-Afghan talks once the US and the Taliban sign the peace deal."The Afghan government has considered the principle of consultation as a key element in forming an inclusive peace negotiating delegation--the peace negotiating team will be inclusive to make sure that it can represent the people of Afghanistan in a comprehensive way," said Naji Anwari, spokeswoman for the State Ministry on Peace Affairs.
--IANS ksk/