ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan told Arab News on Friday that senior American, Chinese, Russian and Pakistani officials had opened consultations in Doha to “explore a way forward in the Afghan peace process.”
Khan is part of the Pakistani delegation attending the meeting of the “Extended Troika on the Peaceful Settlement in Afghanistan” that is held at a time when there has been no substantial progress in intra-Afghan negotiations that began last year in September.
Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq is leading his country’s delegation.
“All these meetings and initiatives are to held to achieve the goal [of peaceful settlement] and reflect Pakistan’s commitment for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan,” Khan told Arab News from Doha.
“Pakistan believes there is no military solution to the Afghan conflict and a peaceful resolution of all hostilities requires serious negotiations among all Afghan stakeholders for an inclusive, broad-based and comprehensive political settlement in Afghanistan,” he added.
Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem said in a Twitter post that the Taliban political representatives met special envoys from the US, China, Russia and Pakistan on Friday.
He said that the meeting discussed the release of remaining Taliban prisoners and removing names of the insurgent group’s leadership from the United Nation’s blacklist and the US rewards list.
Naeem added that all sides agreed to initiate practical work to end sanctions on the Taliban leaders.
Earlier, a Pakistani official, who did not want to be named, said that members of the extended troika would try to convince the Taliban to be at the Istanbul Conference that is expected to be held after Eid Al-Fitr.
The Taliban refused to participate in the Istanbul meeting that was postponed twice this month.
Previously, Naeem said in a Tweet post that the Taliban would not participate in an international conference focusing on the Afghan situation unless all foreign forces left Afghanistan.
The last troika plus meeting was held in Moscow in March that was also attended by the Taliban and Afghan government delegation as well as a Qatari envoy and Afghan political leaders.
The Taliban had rejected a joint statement that came out of the Moscow meeting as interference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs since it opposed the restoration of Taliban’s Islamic Emirate.
Pakistani team in talks with the Taliban
In another development, a Pakistani official told Arab News on condition of anonymity that a Pakistani delegation had gone to Qatar on Wednesday to meet the Taliban political envoys and “convince them to show flexibility in intra-Afghan talks and reduce violence.”
The Taliban last month floated a proposal for a three-month reduction in violence to create a conducive environment for talks, though the initiative could not go too far after United States President Joe Biden announced a delayed troop withdrawal that would finish by September 11.
The United States and the Taliban signed an agreement in late February 2020, calling for a full withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan by May 2021.
Pakistan said on Thursday it had always maintained that it could not control the Taliban.
“We will continue encouraging them to remain engaged in the peace process leading to an inclusive, broad-based and comprehensive political settlement in Afghanistan,” foreign office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said at his weekly news briefing.
US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad is also in Doha to attend the meeting.
Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen confirmed in a Twitter post that Khalilzad interacted with the political representatives of the insurgent group on Thursday and discussed the latest situation in Afghanistan.
United States, Russia, China and Pakistan discuss fragile Afghan peace process in Doha
https://arab.news/9ce3k
United States, Russia, China and Pakistan discuss fragile Afghan peace process in Doha
- The special representatives of the four countries met with the Taliban political representatives to find a way forward in peace talks
- The Taliban distanced themselves from international peace efforts after President Joe Biden announced delayed troop withdrawal
UK team in Pakistan for aviation audit ahead of resumption of PIA flights
- European safety agency in November lifted 2020 bar on PIA operating in bloc
- PIA resumed Europe operations on Jan. 10 with flight to Paris from Islamabad
KARACHI: A delegation from the United Kingdom’s Department for Transport and Civil Aviation Authority arrived in Pakistan today, Monday, to conduct a safety assessment ahead of the resumption of PIA flight operations between Pakistan and the UK.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency in November lifted its ban on Pakistan’s national carrier operating in the bloc, a restriction that was placed in 2020 over concerns about the ability of Pakistani authorities and its Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) to ensure compliance with international aviation standards. The suspension came days after Pakistan launched an investigation into the validity of pilots’ licenses issued in the country following a PIA plane crash that killed 97 people.
On Jan. 10, PIA resumed flights to European destinations with a plane departing for Paris from Islamabad International Airport.
“There will be several high-level meetings between the two sides,” PCAA said in a statement after the UK team’s arrival in Pakistan.
“The discussions will examine aviation safety protocols, review documentation, and evaluate operational procedures. The UK delegation is also scheduled to visit airlines to assess compliance with international standards.”
PCAA said its officials had been engaged for months in technical talks with UK authorities and were “optimistic about the positive outcome of this visit.”
In November EASA said the decision to allow PIA to perform commercial air transport operations to, from and within the EU was based on the “significant efforts” made by the PCAA.
Pakistan had grounded 262 of the country’s 860 pilots, including 141 of PIA’s 434, whose licenses the then aviation minister termed “dubious.” The investigation ultimately did not reveal any major concerns, but the suspension remained in place.
The ban was costing PIA nearly 40 billion Pakistani rupees ($144 million) in revenue annually, according to government records presented in parliament.
Truck carrying liquified petroleum gas explodes in central Pakistan, killing 5 people
- Over two dozen others injured in Multan, an old city in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province
- Firefighters have extinguished flames as officers investigate cause behind gas leak in truck
MULTAN, Pakistan: A truck carrying liquified petroleum gas caught fire and exploded overnight near an industrial area in central Pakistan, killing five people and injuring more than two dozen others, officials said Monday.
The explosion in Multan, a city in the eastern Punjab province, substantially damaged nearby shops and homes, and the deaths were caused by the fire and the collapse of roofs of houses, rescue official Mohammad Bilal said.
He said firefighters had extinguished the blaze and officers are investigating to determine exactly what the gas leak in the truck and the subsequent explosion.
China bans meat imports from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other nations over disease worries
- Ban comes after the World Health Organization released information of disease outbreaks in various countries
- China stops imports from Palestine, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh due to sheep pox, goat pox
BEIJING: China has prohibited imports of sheep, goat, poultry and even-toed ungulates from African, Asian and European countries due to outbreaks of livestock diseases such as sheep pox, goat pox and foot-and-mouth-disease.
The ban, which also includes processed and unprocessed products, comes after the World Health Organization released information of disease outbreaks in various countries, according to a series of announcements by China’s General Administration of Customs dated Jan. 21.
The ban from the world’s largest meat importer affects Ghana, Somalia, Qatar, Congo (DRC), Nigeria, and Tanzania, Egypt, Bulgaria, East Timor and Eritrea.
China also said it has stopped imports of sheep, goat and related products from Palestine, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh due to sheep pox and goat pox outbreaks.
It also blocked the imports of even-toed ungulates and related products from Germany following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, it said.
Imran Khan’s party asks government to form committee to appoint new Pakistan election commissioner
- Demand comes as Pakistan Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja’s tenure expires
- Khan’s party accuses Raja of manipulating results of February 2024 elections, which he denies
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Monday repeated its demand for the government to constitute a parliamentary committee to appoint a new chief election commissioner (CEC), a day after his term in office expired.
Omar Ayub, a PTI lawmaker and leader of the opposition in the lower house of Pakistan’s parliament, wrote to Speaker Ayaz Sadiq on Jan. 15 to form a parliamentary committee to appoint a new chief election commissioner. Ayub said Raja’s term would expire on Feb. 26, urging him to constitute the committee “to facilitate this important constitutional requirement.”
Raja oversaw Pakistan’s contentious general election last year which were marred by a countrywide shutdown of cellular networks, suspension of Internet services and delayed results. The PTI and other opposition parties alleged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) under Raja manipulated the results of the polls to facilitate his political rivals. The ECP has strongly rejected the PTI’s allegations while the caretaker government at the time said mobile phone and Internet services were suspended to maintain law and order in the country.
“Wrote a letter to the Speaker National Assembly of Pakistan on 15th January 2025 to constitute a Parliamentary Committee for the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner,” Ayub wrote on social media platform X.
“Sikander Sultan Raja’s term ended yesterday (26th January 2025). He has no moral authority to continue. He and the 2 ‘retired’ commissioners should step down immediately,” he added.
Tensions between Khan’s party and Raja escalated in August 2022 when the ECP ruled that the PTI had received millions of dollars in funds from foreign countries, including the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and Australia, in violation of the constitution and concealed information related to it. Khan’s party denied it had hidden any information related to the funding.
In a separate verdict in October 2022, the ECP disqualified Khan from public office in a case registered against the ex-premier for failing to declare assets he earned from the sale of state gifts. Khan and his party have denied any wrongdoing.
Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023 on a slew of charges, was ousted from the prime minister’s post in April 2022 via a parliamentary vote. Once considered close to the military, Khan had a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful army in the days leading to his ouster.
Since his ouster from office, the former prime minister has led a defiant campaign against the military, whom he accuses of supporting his political rivals. Pakistan’s army and the government both reject his allegations strongly, with the military saying it does not interfere in politics.
The development also takes place amid renewed political tensions between the government and the PTI after the latter withdrew from negotiations with the former. Both sides kicked off talks last month to ease political tensions in the country. The PTI demanded the government release Khan and all political prisoners, and constitute judicial commissions to probe anti-government protests that took place in May 2023 and November 2024.
The PTI announced last week it would not partake in further talks with the government unless it forms judicial commissions. The government’s negotiation committee said it would respond to the PTI’s demands by Jan. 28, criticizing Khan’s party for ending talks “unilaterally.
Pakistan PM, president condemn gun attack on speaker Azad Kashmir’s convoy
- Chaudhry Latif Akbar’s convoy was fired upon when it arrived on Sunday in village near Muzaffarabad
- Shehbaz Sharif prays for early recovery of three persons injured, orders stern action against culprits
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday condemned a gun attack targeting the speaker of the Kashmir region administered by Pakistan that left three people injured, tasking authorities to take stern action against the culprits, state-run media reported.
Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar, a leader of the Sharif-led ruling coalition ally Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), was visiting his constituency in Kakliyot village around 15km south of Muzaffarabad when the shooting took place on Sunday as per news reports.
Three PPP supporters who were part of the convoy were injured in the attack. Akbar had reportedly received threats from Raja Amir Zafar, a local district council member, who vowed that no one would be allowed to enter the village for Akbar’s visit.
“President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have strongly condemned the incident of firing on the convoy of Speaker of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
Zardari described the attack on the speaker as a “cowardly and despicable act,” praying for the early recovery of the injured.
In his statement, the Pakistani prime minister prayed for the early recovery of the injured persons.
“The Prime Minister directed the authorities concerned to take immediate action and ensure the arrest of those responsible for the attack,” Radio Pakistan reported.
Azad Kashmir is a self-governing administrative unit under Pakistan’s control but is not recognized as a sovereign country. The Muslim-majority Kashmir region has long been a source of tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan, leading them to fight two out of three wars since winning independence from the British Empire in 1947 over the disputed territory.
The scenic mountain region is divided between India, which rules the populous Kashmir Valley and the Hindu-dominated region around Jammu city, Pakistan, which controls a wedge of territory in the west called AJK, and China, which holds a thinly populated high-altitude area in the north. Besides Pakistan, India also has an ongoing conflict with China over their disputed frontier.
