Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) welcomed Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s statement regarding talks with militants on Monday. According to a private TV channel, TTP leader Maulvi Faqir Muhammed said his group believed in peace and was ready for direct talks with the government, conditionally without any intermediaries. Faqir also said the TTP did not want Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain to be a part of the talks, without stating a particular reason.