Mullah Omar talking peace with US
January 6th, 2012 - 2:07 pm ICT by IANS
Kabul, Jan 6 (IANS) The elusive Afghan Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, who had called on his warriors last November to continue the war against NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, has now confirmed having opened peace talks with the US authorities, Geo News reported.
The one-eyed Omar, who has escaped the US manhunt since his regime was ousted in late 2001, made two demands — release of Afghan prisoners from Guantanamo Bay detention facility and complete pullout of US-led forces from Afghanistan, the report added.
The US State Department, however, said that no decision has yet been made on releasing the Taliban detainees from Guantanamo Bay prison.
“A total of 1,462 Afghan civilians had been killed in the first half of 2011, up 15 percent over the same period in 2010,” the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in mid-year report released in July, 2011.
Last year, in mid-December, a Dawn news report said US officials confirmed that they had held talks recently with Taliban representatives in Qatar and Germany. The US also supported the step of opening a political office by Taliban in Qatar, which would serve as an outpost for the outlawed insurgent movement.
Mullah Omar, the founder of the Taliban movement, has been in hiding since 2001 when the US-led invasion of Afghanistan toppled his Islamist fundamentalist regime.
The US officials earlier claimed that Mullah Omar was one of the original planners of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States, it added.
- Mullah Omar urges Taliban not to hurt civilians - Nov 05, 2011
- Stop night raids, Karzai tells NATO - Dec 25, 2011
- US to release five Taliban from Guantanamo? - Apr 01, 2012
- Four children killed in Afghanistan blast - Nov 01, 2011
- Mullah Omar dead? Taliban says no (Second Lead) - May 23, 2011
- Taliban denies Mullah Omar is dead (Night Lead) - May 23, 2011
- Karzai again calls for national reconciliation - Jul 13, 2012
- Taliban suspends peace talks with US - Mar 15, 2012
- Mullah Omar dead? Taliban denies it (Fourth Lead) - May 23, 2011
- 18 Afghan civilians killed in blast (Lead) - Jul 29, 2011
- Mullah Omar dead? No, says Taliban (Third Lead) - May 23, 2011
- Taliban close to victory, says Mullah Omar (Lead) - Sep 09, 2010
- Five die in Afghanistan blast - Sep 11, 2011
- Everyone knows Taliban leader Mullah Omar is in Pakistan: France - Sep 15, 2010
- Taliban demands removal of leaders names from US, UN terror blacklist - Oct 30, 2010
Tags: afghan taliban, assistance mission, dawn news, detention facility, geo news, insurgent movement, invasion of afghanistan, last november, mullah mohammad omar, mullah omar, news report, peace talks, pullout, september 11 2001, september 11 2001 terrorist attacks, supreme leader, taliban detainees, taliban movement, unama, us state department