The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the Sunni terrorist group better known as the Taliban, are claiming the United States has agreed to discuss withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan as part of talks to end the 17-year war. Washington, however, has not officially confirmed this claim.
Western media, however, has confirmed a meeting between Taliban representatives and U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad in Doha, Qatar on Oct. 12 to discuss the Taliban's conditions for ending the increasingly brutal war.
Two top Taliban officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, claimed six American delegates arrived in Doha to meet with Taliban leaders and agreed to discuss all issues, including the pullout of foreign troops. One of these officials, however, admitted the Doha meeting was a preliminary one in which issues were discussed in general and not in detail. He alleges more talks will take place in the near future.
U.S. officials at the country's embassy in Kabul and Khalilzad did not immediately comment on what occurred during the Doha talks. It was the second time U.S. officials met with the Taliban in Qatar. The first meeting occurred in July and included U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Alice Wells.
Khalilzad has also met officials from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates in an attempt to renew the long-stalled direct talks with the Taliban.
The Taliban, however, has repeatedly rejected offers of talks with the Afghan government, calling Afghan government officials "U.S. puppets." They instead demand they meet U.S. officials for talks about foreign troop withdrawals.
In July, the U.S. said it was ready for direct talks with the Taliban. It wanted negotiations and was willing to "discuss the role of international forces."
The Taliban continues to say the presence of foreign troops is the biggest obstacle to peace in Afghanistan. Other Taliban demands for ending the relentless war include the lifting of sanctions on its leaders; the release of fighters imprisoned in Afghanistan, and the establishment of an official political office.
Since it began with the U.S. invasion in 2001, the War in Afghanistan has claimed the lives of more than 51,000 Afghan and allied troops, as well as over 70,000 Taliban. More than 40,000 civilians have been killed. In excess of 8,000 civilians were killed in the first nine months of this year.
Fighting the Taliban are the 350,000 men of the Afghan National Security Force; more than 18,000 men of the U.S.-led Resolute Support Mission and 20,000 military contractors. There are 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The Taliban and its allies are estimated to have more than 70,000 fighters.
