In a statement, the Presidential Palace said Mohammad Masoom Stanikzai, head of the peace negotiating team for government and a number of its members have met with Afghan President, discussing the start of intra-Afghan negotiations with the Taliban.
“The President talked about the outcome of the Loya Jirga and the national consensus on peace to move forward,” Sediq Sediqqi, a presidential spokesman wrote on Twitter.
According to the statement, President Ghani said the Loya Jirga – or Afghan grand assembly – has drawn a peace roadmap for government, and the government is committed to the implement it.
It comes days after Afghan President signed a decree, August 10, ordering the release of a final batch of Taliban prisoners which was a precondition for the start of intra-Afghan negotiations.
Earlier on Sunday, Afghan consultative Loya Jirga, or the grand assembly of Afghan elders and leaders, in a 25-article resolution approved the release of the remaining 400 “hard-core” inmates of the Taliban which was the last obstacle to begin intra-Afghan talks.
“To remove the last sticking point [on the way to ending the longest-running war of the country], allow the start of the peace process and an end of bloodshed, the Loya Jirga approves the release of 400 Taliban,” the grand assembly (Loya Jirga) said in a resolution released Sunday, August 09.
President Ghani said in the third day of the Loya Jirga that he would sign a decree to release the remaining 400 Taliban prisoners who were said to be behind high-profile attacks.
Following the decisions of government officials on the release of prisoners, Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the political office of the group told TKG that the long-awaited direct talks between Afghans will begin in less than a week in the Qatari capital of Doha after the Taliban’s final group of prisoners are released.
Officials from both sides confirm the negotiations will be held in Doha, Qatar.
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