Pakistani Taliban names peace talks team

The Taliban has named its senior leader, Qari Shakeel, as head of a nine-member consultative body to supervise proposed negotiations with the Pakistani government in an effort to end a decade-long war that has killed thousands.

Shahidullah Shahid, a spokesperson for the powerful Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – a conglomerate of various Taliban groups in Pakistan – announced the formation of the political Shura (the consultative body) while talking to local journalists by telephone from an undisclosed location on Sunday evening.

Another senior TTP commander, Azam Tariq Mehsud will be Shakeel’s deputy, while other members include Shahidullah himself, Omer Khalid Khurasani, Khalid Haqqani, and others.

The TTP on Saturday named a five-member team to negotiate with the government’s team, an announcement immediately welcomed by Pakistan Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

The TTP team includes cricketer-turned politician Imran Khan.

Source: World Bulletin