Taliban have 'no cease-fire plans' in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan－The Taliban on Monday denied agreeing to any cease-fire in Afghanistan after rumors swirled of a potential deal that would see a reduction in fighting after more than 18 years of war.

"In the past few days, some media have been releasing untrue reports about a cease-fire.... The fact is that, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has no cease-fire plans," the Taliban said in a statement.

But according to officials from the Taliban, the insurgent group's ruling council agreed on Sunday to a temporary cease-fire in Afghanistan, providing a window in which a peace agreement with the United States can be signed. The council didn't say when it would begin.

A cease-fire, which had been demanded by Washington before any peace agreement could be signed, would allow the US to bring home its troops from Afghanistan and end Washington's longest war in history.

There was no immediate response from Washington.

The US wants any deal to include a promise from the Taliban that Afghanistan would not be used as a base by terrorist groups. The US currently has an estimated 12,000 troops in Afghanistan.

Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor was expected to approve the cease-fire decision. The duration of the cease-fire and when it would begin has was not been specified.

Four members of the Taliban negotiating team met for a week with the ruling council before they agreed on the brief cease-fire. The negotiating team returned Sunday to Doha, Qatar, where the Taliban maintain their political office and where US special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has been holding peace talks with the religious militia since September, 2018.

Talks were suspended in September when both sides seemed on the verge of signing a peace pact. However, a surge in violence in the capital Kabul resulted in the killing of a US soldier, prompting US President Donald Trump to declare the deal "dead". Talks resumed after Trump made a surprise visit to Afghanistan at the end of November announcing the Taliban were ready to talk and agree to a reduction in violence.

Khalilzad returned to Doha at the beginning of December. It was then that he proposed a temporary halt to hostilities to pave the way to an agreement being signed, according to Taliban officials.

Taliban officials familiar with the negotiations spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media outlets.

Key pillar

A key pillar of the agreement, which the US and the Taliban have been hammering out for more than a year, is direct negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban insurgents.

Those intra-Afghan talks were expected to be held within two weeks of the signing of a US-Taliban peace deal. They will decide what a post-war Afghanistan will look like.

The first item on the agenda is expected to address how to implement a cease-fire between the Taliban and Afghanistan's National Security Forces. The negotiations, however, were expected to be prickly and will cover a variety of thorny issues, including rights of women, free speech, and changes to the country's constitution.

The intra-Afghan talks would also lay out the fate of tens of thousands of Taliban fighters and the heavily armed militias belonging to Afghan warlords. Those warlords have amassed wealth and power since the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001 by the US-led coalition shortly after Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida carried out the Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the US. The Taliban had harbored bin Laden, although there was no indication they were aware of al-Qaida's plans to attack the US.

Even as the Taliban leaders have been talking about ceasing hostilities, Taliban insurgents carried out an attack in northern Afghanistan on Sunday that killed at least 17 local militiamen.

The attack apparently targeted a local militia commander who escaped unharmed, said Jawad Hajri, a spokesman for the governor of Takhar Province, where the attack took place late Saturday.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Taliban frequently target Afghan National Security Forces and US forces, as well as government officials. But scores of Afghan civilians also have been killed in the cross-fire or by roadside bombs planted by militants. The United Nations has called on all sides in the conflict to reduce civilian casualties. The world body said increased US airstrikes and ground operations by Afghan forces, as well as relentless Taliban attacks, have contributed to an increase in civilian casualties.

Agencies