Afghan leaders call on Taliban to reduce violence and end the war

Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum, the former vice president, and Atta Mohammad Noor, the former governor of Balkh province, on Thursday stressed the need to reduce violence and end the killing of people in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan’s third marshal, Dostum, said during Eid-ul-Fitr prayers in Sheberghan, the capital of Jawzjan province, the Taliban need to consider a continuous ceasefire to achieve peace.

Dostum says the role and position of the people in peace talks must be taken seriously.

Dostum stressed the need to end the war and reduce violence in Afghanistan.

Dostum added that he will not accept the presence of the Taliban with their idea of closing schools and depriving girls of education.

“We support peace and we must make sure that all the people of Afghanistan, all the ethnic figures of the Afghan people see themselves in those decisions,” Dostum said.

Referring to the removal of Naqibullah Fayeq, the former governor of Faryab, Dostum called on the government to leave the decisions on the appointment of governors and district governors to the people.

Meanwhile, Atta Mohammad Noor, the former governor of Balkh, warned the Taliban that if they do not come to the negotiating table and if they think of conquering Afghanistan through war, the people will mobilize alongside the country’s security forces.

Noor, said: “If the fratricide persists, it is where the national mobilization can respond with force alongside the Afghan armed forces under the umbrella of the regime.”
A number of local officials in Balkh are also emphasizing a permanent ceasefire.

“The main goal of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a permanent ceasefire and an end to the killing of innocent people,” said Farhad Azimi, the governor of Balkh.

Mohammad Afzal Hadid, head of the Balkh Provincial Council, said: “If someone wants to rule the Afghan people with oppression and torture, such governments are not sustainable.”

However, the Taliban have previously said that the Eid ceasefire will not last after Eid and that they will continue their attacks.

Meanwhile, Hezb-e-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar says that with the withdrawal of foreign troops and a change in government position, or the creation of a transitional government, there is no reason for the war to continue in the country.

Hekmatyar called on the Taliban to pursue a new strategy for peace.

Hekmatyar emphasizes that Afghanistan is in a critical situation and that intelligence units of a number of countries are trying to disrupt the situation for the benefit of themselves.

“Our expectation from the Taliban is that the Taliban need to adopt a new strategy, considering the situation and the fact that foreign forces are leaving and one of the major causes of their war is gone,” he said.

He believes that the only way to achieve unconditional consensus around peace is through influential domestic political channels. He also stressed that if the system changed the military and security structures should remain in place.

The Taliban have intensified fighting in more than 22 provinces of Afghanistan since the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan started and are likely to escalate further after a three-day Eid ceasefire.