Taliban Reject US Commander’s Statement on Peace Talks
The Taliban say they “categorically reject” a statement made this week by the US commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan about “off stage” contacts and dialogue taking place between the Kabul government and the insurgents. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says in a statement distributed to the media on Friday that Gen John Nicholson’s remarks, made to reporters at the Pentagon from his Kabul office, were a “baseless claim”.
Nicholson said Wednesday that “mid-level, senior-level Taliban leaders” are “engaging with Afghans”, adding that unspecified international organizations, foreign governments and other interested parties also are involved.
Afghan officials say security forces battle a group of attackers who stormed a government building in the eastern city of Jalalabad for hours in a coordinated assault that killed at least fifteen people and wounded dozens.