Pakistani peace negotiator pledges urging Taliban to extend ceasefire

A senior intermediary of the Pakistani Taliban, Maulana Sami-ul-Haq, Wednesday said that he would urge the Taliban to extend their ceasefire to take the dialogue process forward.

The Taliban had ended their 40-day ceasefire on April 10 after they claimed the government has failed to make progress on their two initial demands -- release of non-combatant prisoners and giving them some areas in South Waziristan tribal region for future talks.

The talks are deadlocked at the moment. The Taliban intermediaries and a government negotiation team met in Islamabad on Tuesday and reviewed options to revive the dialogue process. Interior Minister Ch Nisar Ali Khan had called the meeting to explain the government's stance on the talks.

Maulana Sami ul Haqa said the negotiators will soon contact the Taliban political council to revive the dialogue process. He said the Taliban intermediaries are now convinced that the political and military leadership is on the same page on the talks.

Asked about why the talks have not made any progress so far, he said there are complains and reservations on both sides, adding there is a need to bridge the trust gap.

He said that the committees reviewed the difficulties in the dialogue and agreed to take steps to remove misunderstanding and speed up the process.

"The Taliban committee will continue its efforts to make the dialogue process successful and a sub-committee will be formed to resolve the problems," he said.

The Maulana said the Taliban intermediaries are trying to ensure smooth dialogue process, adding that he would contact the Taliban to discuss the next round of direct talks.

The government also wants the Taliban free all civilian prisoners they have allegedly kidnapped for ransom or to use them for exchange of prisoners with the government.

The banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan Wednesday said extension in the ceasefire would be difficult unless the government makes progress on their two initial demands.

An unnamed Taliban leader was quoted by the local media as saying that the Taliban leadership awaits a positive response to their demands on the release of non-combatant prisoners and giving them an area in South Waziristan for future talks.

He evaded a question when asked as to who are behind the recent bomb attacks on police officers in the country's northwest.