The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Thursday declared an end to amonth-long ceasefire arranged with the aid of the Afghan Taliban, accusingthe government of breaching terms including a prisoner release agreementand the formation of negotiating committees.
A statement issued by the TTP late in the evening gave out details of thesix-point agreement that it said it had reached with the government underthe aegis of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” (IEA) on Oct 25, 2021.
The two sides, according to the agreement, had accepted that the IEA wouldplay the role of a mediator and that both sides would form five-membercommittees each which, under the supervision of the mediator, would discussthe next course of action and demands of each sides.
Both sides, it said, had also agreed to observe a month-long ceasefire fromNov 1 to Nov 30, 2021 and that the government would release 102 “imprisonedmujahideen” and hand them over to the TTP through the “IEA and that bothsides would issue a joint statement regarding the ceasefire on Nov 1, 2021”.
According to the statement, the government not only failed to implement thedecisions reached between the two sides but to the contrary, the securityforces conducted raids in Dera Ismail Khan, Lakki Marwat, Swat, Bajaur,Swabi and North Waziristan and killed and detained militants.
“Under these circumstances, it is not possible to extend the ceasefire,”the TTP said.
Earlier in an audio, Mufti Noor Wali Mahsud announced an end to theceasefire and asked his fighters to resume attacks past 12am. The ceasefirehad come into effect on Nov 9.
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In the audio, Mufti Noor can be heard as saying that since the TTP has notheard back from the mediators or the government, therefore, past midnight,his fighters reserve the right to resume attacks wherever they were.
The TTP decision to end the ceasefire is a big setback to the governmentefforts to secure a peace agreement with the militants waging war againstthe state for decades.
A lot of informal discussions had taken place between the two sides beforeand during the ceasefire and certain confidence-building steps had beenagreed upon to reassure each other, these sources said.
Afghan Taliban are playing the role of principal mediator between Pakistanand the outlawed militant conglomerate comprising several factions.
