Hekmatyar against Closure of Taliban Office in Qatar

The leader of Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin Hekmatyar expressed opposition to the closure during a meeting with the trial elders of Hood Khel in his office on Sunday.
 
He said the office should remain in its place and the peace process with the group should be launched in a serious manner.
 
According to Hekmatyar, those who are attempting to extend the war in Afghanistan and stand against peace and reconciliation, have become hopeless.
 
He once again reiterated his previous claims regarding the individuals and groups who had paved the way for civil war, emphasizing that with the return of him, the individuals and groups have failed to implement their conspiracies.
 
This comes as reports emerged earlier suggesting that the US President Donald Trump has stepped pressure on President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani for the closure of the Taliban office in Qatar.
 
Sources privy of the development have said President Trump has discussed the issue with Afghan Counterpart President Ghani.
 
The Qatar Taliban office was opened with US support a few years back, but former Afghan president Hamid Karzai had opposed the move.
 
Last month reports emerged that The United Arab Emirates (UAE), which along with three other Arab states has boycotted Qatar for its alleged dealings with terrorist groups, had itself sought to host an office of the Afghan Taliban militant group back in 2011.
 
The Emirates and Saudi Arabia were two of the only three states to endorse a Taliban regime that was in place in Afghanistan before a 2001 invasion of the country by the US. Calls for the closure of the Taliban group in Afghanistan are seen as an extension of the tensions between Qatar and Saudi Arabia.