Pakistani leaders call for peace talks with Taliban

Pakistani political leaders participating in a conference have called for immediate peace talks with the Taliban.

The call was made in the All Parties Conference (APC) which was held in the capital Islamabad on Thursday.

Reports say that over 27 political parties participated in the one-day conference to discuss the issue of engaging in dialogue with the Taliban.

They stressed that the first priority should be given to dialogue with the militants to establish peace in Pakistan. In recent weeks, calls for peace talks have grown and both the militants and the government have shown interest in negotiation.

On February 5, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik said his country would be ready to hold peace talks with the Taliban militants.

“You tell us what team you would like to talk to, and let’s set an agenda,” he said.

Earlier this month, Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud also issued a statement saying that the militant group “will consider every serious offer for talks.”

Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan also said the militant group would respond “positively to the government peace talks offer but it seems to be non-serious.”

Pakistan has experienced unrelenting bombings and other militant attacks since 2001, after Islamabad joined an alliance with Washington in the so-called war on terror.