Taliban leaders can be seen heading towards their office in Daffna on June 18, 2013. -File photo.
By Salman Siddiqui/Staff Reporter
On the occasion of the first anniversary of the Taliban political office in Doha today, the Afghan Taliban have expressed their optimism about reopening their ‘temporarily shut’ office in Daffna ‘in the near future’ that will facilitate further talks with the US.
Moreover, they have highlighted the fact that the biggest achievement of the political office members in Qatar so far has been the release of their five Taliban leaders from Guantanamo Bay in exchange for one US soldier on May 31.
Exactly one year ago today on June 18, 2013, the Afghan Taliban had announced the opening of their ‘Political Office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’ at a historic press conference in Qatar.
However, less than a week later, the Taliban abandoned their office and the entire peace process with the US itself, when the Afghan President Hamid Karzai-led administration allegedly ‘sabotaged’ their efforts, raising a hue and cry over their office nameplate and a flag hoisted at their Daffna compound.
A senior Taliban source told Gulf Times that June 18 was indeed a milestone event in the Taliban movement, which saw the establishment of their first official overseas diplomatic mission since they were ousted from power in Afghanistan in 2001.
Despite the ups and downs, the Taliban office members believe that they have been successful in taking their movement forward through the path of diplomacy.
“The whole world has now witnessed the success of our prisoner exchange that brought back five of our people from Guantanamo Bay. Our political office in Qatar led by Tayyab Aga was at the forefront of this huge success,” he said.
The Taliban leader also said that their political office in Doha was still their office, since they had never shut it down ‘permanently’. “We had announced only a boycott of the office,” he said.
He, however, rubbished claims made in a recent NYT article, which quoted a policeman posted outside their office as saying that it had been in use as recently as two months back. “We have not used it since we announced the boycott,” he clarified.
The senior Taliban leader also said that ever since they and the US successfully concluded a prisoner swap deal on May 31 through indirect talks with Qatar’s mediation, the reopening their office has become a possibility. But he put the onus of future talks on the US.
“Yes, there is a possibility that our office may be reopened in the near future and more talks will be held. But it all depends on the US administration if they are willing to remove the obstacles that have been put in place on our path.” Also, referring to the Afghan elections process, he said that the Taliban were watching the developments in Afghanistan very closely.
In any case, he said that the prisoner swap deal was a ‘positive step’ to resolving the Afghanistan conflict and hoped that more such steps would occur in the future.
He did not elaborate on the alleged hurdles, but it is understood that there are a number of unresolved issues between the US and the Afghan Taliban, including the case of other Afghan prisoners at Guantanamo Bay; the bilateral security agreement with the Afghan government that would allow US forces to remain in Afghanistan beyond 2014 etc.
Moreover, at the moment, the future role of the five released Taliban leaders, Mohamed Fazl Akhund, Noorulallah Noori, Khairullah Khairkhuwa, Abdul Haq Wasiq and Maulvi Mohamed Nabi Omari, who now live in Doha, remains undecided. However, it is expected that they too would join the Taliban political office in Doha as members.
