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| India-Pakistan |
| Ex-Taliban leader Mullah Baradar in Peshawar ahead of talks |
| 2013-10-04 |
| [Dawn] Former Taliban second-in-command Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, held in Pakistain, has been taken to a safe house in the violence-plagued city of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. near the Afghan border, moving a step closer to starting peace talks with the Afghan Taliban, security sources said on Thursday. Afghanistan and the United States believe Baradar holds the key to stopping the war in Afghanistan because he is influential enough to persuade his former comrades to stop fighting. But his movements have been shrouded in secrecy since Pakistain announced his release on Sept 20. Baradar remains effectively under house arrest in Pakistain, an arrangement which could undermine his role as a peacemaker. "Baradar was moved from one safe house in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... to another, and has now been moved to Peshawar," one senior Pak defence official told Rooters. "He has been in regular touch with his colleagues and the dialogue is on course." The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to discuss Baradar's movements with journalists, refused to give any further details. It was unclear who Baradar would meet and where, or whether he would cross into Afghanistan to meet the Taliban or stay in Peshawar. Another intelligence official confirmed separately that Baradar was in Peshawar, a volatile city hit by frequent attacks by the Pak Taliban, but gave no further details. Baradar was once a close friend of the reclusive, one-eyed Taliban leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, who gave him his nom de guerre, "Baradar" or "brother". He still enjoys much respect among Taliban fighters. Baradar also belongs to the same tribe as Afghanistan's Caped President Hamid Maybe I'll join the TalibanKarzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtunface on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... and has once reached out to the Kabul government with a peace proposal. Some are sceptical about his role as a peacemaker, with critics saying his years in detention have eroded his sway over the insurgency. There are also doubts whether real decision-makers such as Mullah Omar ... a minor Pashtun commander in the war against the Soviets who made good as leader of the Taliban. As ruler of Afghanistan, he took the title Leader of the Faithful. The imposition of Pashtunkhwa on the nation institutionalized ignorance and brutality in a country already notable for its own fair share of ignorance and brutality... would agree to talk to him. Many also believe war-hardened forces of Evil are likely to be suspicious of a man seen as close to Pak authorities. Afghanistan, which suspects its neighbour of trying to influence its internal affairs, wants Baradar to be handed over and believes he cannot be considered released as long as he is on Pak soil. |
| Posted by:Fred |