Taliban not to participate in next Peace Jirga, group spokesman tells MNA

Taliban spokesman Zabihollah Mujahid said that Taliban is ready to hold talks with the Kabul government on condition it treats as a faction in Afghan politics not the government.

Mujahid also said that Taliban will by no means call for the formation an interim government because they do not consider it to be beneficial to the people of Afghanistan, adding that the group will not allow anyone to take advantage of the group’s position in Afghanistan political sphere for personal gain.

Meanwhile, the spokesman said that Taliban will take part in the second round of intra-Afghan conference, which is slated for April 14-15 in Doha, Qatar.

He went on to say that Taliban do not care much about the Afghan government’s concerns over the Duha conference and only care about the the interests of the Afghan nation, especially the end of occupation is what that matters for the group.

He accused the Afghan government as acting in line with the US interests, saying that the Taliban does not recognize the Kabul government as a legitimate government for the Afghan nation.

Mujahid said the armed group will not take part in the next meeting of the Afghanistan's National Consultative Peace Jirga (NCPJ) after it was announced that the Afghan government will invite them.

“When we do not recognize Kabul's administration as a government, we do not agree with its actions too,” the Taliban spokesman asserted, adding “any move by the name of Loya Jirga or so which is done under American occupation will be decided upon by Americans like the decisions made in the previous Loya Jirga at Karzai's time and that's why the Loya Jirga does not matter to us.”

Mujahid underscored that the Taliban have not suggested the formation of an interim government, nor they have ever supported such an idea.

He further noted that the Taliban want to form an independent Islamic state because a weak government cannot protect the interests of the Afghan nation, nor can it prevent occupation.

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