LONDON (NNN-KUNA) -- Talks to end the 10-year war in Afghanistan could be on the horizon after the US agreed to back a plan to let the Taliban open an office in the Middle East, it was revealed here.The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is likely to open a political headquarters in Qatar before Christmas, according to the Times newspaper Monday.
It is hoped this would help facilitate peace talks in the hope of arranging a truce with the "terrorist entity" responsible for fueling the conflict. Formal peace talks to end the 10-year war in Afghanistan could be on the horizon after this move.
Senior members of the Taliban -- namely Tayyab Agha -- have been talking on and off with western diplomats for the past year but it is hoped this will accelerate the process, the newspaper reported. The rarely-photographed Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammed Omar is understood to be backing the negotiations.
When the office is opened, in the Qatari capital Doha, it will be the first time the Islamist group will have been treated like a recognised political party since it fell from power in 2001, the daily pointed out.
The Times said the Taliban want to make sure its members are free from harassment and arrest whilst based in the city.
The Arab Gulf state has agreed to let the group have a base and Washington decided it should be located away from the influence of Pakistan.
A diplomat told the newspaper 'It will be an address where they have a political office.' He said it would not be an embassy or consulate but 'like a residence where they can be treated like a political party.'
The diplomat said they would not be able to use the base to fundraise or to support its battle for Afghanistan.
The news came on the day the world mourned the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, including the 2,977 people who died after the Al-Qaeda flew two aircraft into New York's twin towers. -- NNN-KUNA
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