Afghan Taliban reject President Ghani’s ceasefire proposal

The Taliban militant group has rejected an Afghan government offer of a three-month ceasefire, saying it would continue with its terrorist attacks to bring under control the country’s strategic regions.

 

 

The Taliban militant group has rejected an Afghan government offer of a three-month ceasefire, saying it would continue with its terrorist attacks to bring under control the country’s strategic regions.

Speaking on condition of anonymity on Monday, two senior Taliban terrorists said their leader had rejected Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s offer of a 90-day ceasefire beginning with this week’s Muslim celebration of Eid al-Adha or the feast of sacrifice.

“Our leadership feels that they’ll prolong their stay in Afghanistan if we announced a ceasefire now,” one of the senior commanders told Reuters on the telephone.

In June, the militant group observed a government ceasefire for the three-day Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. The ceasefire, the first in more than 15 years, ended after the Taliban rejected the government’s offer to extend it beyond three days.