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| Afghanistan |
| Key Peace-Seeking Taliban Leader Missing |
| 2014-04-15 |
| [Tolo News] Efforts are underway to determine the location of Taliban leader Mutasem Agha jan, known as one of the group's more moderate figures, who went missing while on a trip to the United Arab Emirates, according ot the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA). Mutasim Agha Jan served as the Taliban's chief of political affairs and visited the United Arab Emirates (UAE) frequently for peace negotations between the Taliban and Afghanistan's High Peace Council (HPC). Agha Jan, who was one of the few crucial Taliban figures that had direct contact with the HPC, lived in Turkey and recently disappeared during a tour to the UAE. "The government of Islamic Theocratic Republicof Afghanistan is aware of Agha Jan's disappearance in the UAE," MoFA front man Ahmad Shekib Mustaghna said on Monday. There are rumors about the possibility that Agha Jan may have been kidnapped. MoFA has not released a statement in regards to the rumors, but has called the circumstances surrounding the disappearance ambiguous and questionable. Over the past month, Agha Jan had met with the HPC delegation twice; both sides had agreed to continue peace discussions. In addition, Mustaghna touched on the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) reiterating the importance of the Afghan government's preconditions. If signed, the BSA would allow some U.S. forces to stay in Afghanistan post-2014 and ensure continued financial support from the international community for the Afghan cops. "We hope that our preconditions are honored," Mustaghna stated. "If our demands are met, there will be no obstruction in signing the agreement with Washington." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 The ISI dont want peace.They want the Taliban back in charge of Afghanistan. |
| Posted by: Paul D 2014-04-15 19:47 |