‘Afghan govt, Taliban hold secret talks’

KABUL: The Taliban and senior Afghan government officials have held two secret meetings since September in Qatar in a bid to restart long-stalled peace negotiations,

KABUL: The Taliban and senior Afghan government officials have held two secret meetings since September in Qatar in a bid to restart long-stalled peace negotiations, sources said Tuesday.

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An official in the National Unity Government in Kabul told AFP that the two rounds of discussions took place in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office.

Britain’s The Guardian newspaper said the talks were attended by Mullah Abdull Manan Akhund, brother of Taliban founder and long-time leader Mullah Omar who died in 2013.

A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, the newspaper said citing a Taliban official. The Taliban and the US government have so far not commented officially on the development.

The outcome of the September meeting was not clear but a Taliban source told the newspaper that it “went positively and was held in a trouble-free atmosphere”. A second dialogue was held this month despite intensified nationwide fighting between insurgents and US-backed Afghan troops.