TTP, Punjabi Taliban welcome peace talks offer

The banned terrorist outfits Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Punjabi Taliban and Junood-e-Hafsa on Wednesday welcomed peace talks with the government.
TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid said the final decision regarding talks would be made by the shura (consultation council).
The statement came soon after Nawaz Sharif’s announcement in the National Assembly that he has made a four-member committee for talks with the TTP terrorists.
Meanwhile, Hamza, special aide of TTP chief Maulvi Fazlullah, responding to the talks offer, said that the government has taken serious steps for the first time and the names included in the peace committee were respectable, though only the persons included in the committee would not solve the problem. The peace committee should have full authority as well, he added.
He expressed hope that the committee would utilise its abilities in a better way. He said that the TTP’s central shura would announce its committee. The decision of the ceasefire would also be taken by the shura, he added.
Earlier in the day, welcoming the talks offer, Asmatullah Muawiya, warlord of terrorist groups Punjabi Taliban and Junood-e-Hafsa, in a statement from an undisclosed location, said he had already warned the government to avoid falling into the unending US war. He said the PPP and ANP, on the dictates of the US, were trying to push the PML-N into this war. He said it was a matter of satisfaction that the PML-N showed seriousness in this regard.
He said survival of the country existed only in dialogue, adding that the Punjabi Taliban had always supported peace talks.
Muawiya questioned what objective was achieved from the previous seven military operations. He said the Taliban were the supporters of the talks and Pakistan’s future lied in meaningful talks.
He said Samiul Haq, Fazlur Rehman, Munawar Hassan and Imran Khan could play an important role in peace talks. He said a powerful committee, comprising all these parties and the PML-N, should be set up for the talks. He said the Taliban would come up with their response over the four-member committee after thorough scrutiny and deliberations.