Third Islamic State commander killed in drone strike, says Afghan spy agency

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Qazi M. Khalilullah said on Thursday that Prime Minister Nawaz Shar…

Due to defections and an ongoing Pakistani military operation, the Pakistani Taliban has been badly weakened over the past year.

The warring parties are said to have discussed proposed ceasefire, release of Taliban prisoners and an end to militant attacks on government buildings, Geo News cited.

Mr Earnest said that the United States had always encouraged Afghans to participate in an Afghan-led process.

Divisions within the Taliban over the peace process run deep.

However, the claim made by the Afghan media has not been verified yet.

“It is not easy to begin negotiations at any point, both sides have their own demands, but since it was the first official meeting, we consider it a positive step forward”, Mohammad said.

“In that meeting, a detailed discussion will be focused on preventing bloodshed in Afghanistan”, he told reporters in Kabul.

The strikes also left the IS Commander Gul Zaman and his deputy commander dead. In recent months, clashes have been reported between Afghan Taliban and Islamic State militants as they jockey for control of territory in eastern Afghanistan.

He added that the Taliban delegation was approved by the group’s political leader, Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, who frequently speaks for the Islamist insurgents’ reclusive supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar.

Soon after his pledge of allegiance to the Islamic State, TTP had disowned Shahidullah Shahid along with five other top commanders.

The Pentagon has confirmed several strikes in the Achin district of Nangarhar Province in the past week, with one precision strike on Tuesday, and two others on Monday.

“The Taliban strategy of patiently fighting may no longer work, with ISIS here”, said a Western diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.