Taliban in high-level talks with Karzai government, sources say

[Poll_Blind]

Source: The Washington Post

Taliban representatives and the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai have begun secret, high-level talks over a negotiated end to the war, according to Afghan and Arab sources.

The talks follow inconclusive meetings, hosted by Saudi Arabia, that ended more than a year ago. While emphasizing the preliminary nature of the current discussions, the sources said that for the first time they believe that Taliban representatives are fully authorized to speak for the Quetta Shura, the Afghan Taliban organization based in Pakistan, and its leader, Mohammad Omar.

"They are very, very serious about finding a way out," one source close to the talks said of the Taliban.

--snip--

The leadership knows "that they are going to be sidelined," the source said. "They know that more radical elements are being promoted within their rank and file outside their control. . . . All these things are making them absolutely sure that, regardless of the war, they are not in a winning position."

--snip--

Several sources said the discussions with the Quetta Shura do not include representatives of the Haqqani group, a separately led faction that U.S. intelligence considers particularly brutal and that has been the target of recently escalated U.S. drone attacks in northwestern Pakistan.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/05/AR2010100506249.html

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The whole article has much more information and a few snippets really don't do it justice. BTW, how 'bout that line: "They know that more radical elements are being promoted within their rank and file outside their control."

I'm not sure I even have a frame of reference to imagine people the Taliban considers "radical elements".

[qb]

1. Damn. What will the US do if Karzai pulls the war out from under us?

I hope that means the troops come home.

[woo me with science]

2. Oh good.

People negotiating other people's rights away.