Taliban acting against Doha peace agreement: Andar

KABUL (Pajhwok):The National Security Council  on Thursday accused Taliban militants of violating the Doha peace agreement by not reducing and maintaining ties with Al-Qaeda network.

NSC spokesman Rahmatullah Andar in a video clip said clashes in Afghanistan intensified during this winter compared to previous years.

He claimed that foreign insurgents especially Al-Qaeda affiliates were still present in Taliban ranks.

Andar said there was no evidence to proved the Taliban were willing to cut ties with international terror groups because  the Taliban and Al-Qaeda had shared-ideologies which do not recognize any geographical boundaries.

His statement comes two days after the Taliban supreme leader ordered the rebel fighters not to allow foreign militants in their ranks without permission.

According to the US-Taliban peace agreement signed around a year ago in Doha, Taliban had pledged to cut ties with international terror groups including Al-Qaeda, reduce violence and begin peace talks with the Afghan government.

According to a latest Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) report, Al-Qaeda insurgents have dissolved into Taliban ranks.

The UN sanctions monitoring team on February 3, 2021 reported that Al-Qaeda had strong ties with the Taliban after two Al-Qaeda commanders HisamuddinAbdulMaroof aka AbuMohsinAlmisri and Mohammad Hanif aka Abdullah were killed along with some other insurgents in southern Ghazni province.

The United Nations in the report estimated the number of Al Qaeda members from  200 to 500 in Afghanistan.

Hr/ma