Pakistani Delegation To Meet Taliban Reaches Kandahar

Pakistani Delegation To Meet Taliban Reaches Kandahar

Japan Economic Newswire
September 17, 2001

A delegation of senior Pakistani officials on its way to Kabul to speak with the Taliban leadership reached the southwestern city of Kandahar in Afghanistan early Monday morning where it is conducting talks with Taliban leaders about the U.S. demand to hand over terror suspect Osama bin Laden, the Afghan Islamic Press reported.

It said the delegation, sent by Pakistan in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks on the United States, was due to meet with Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar in Kandahar and then proceed to Kabul where it would meet senior cabinet minister and vice president, Mullah Mohammad Hassan. The U.S. government considers Arab dissident and terrorist bin Laden to be the primary suspect in the attacks on Washington and New York last Tuesday which left thousands dead or missing.

On Sunday, Pakistan Foreign Office sources said the delegation will press the Taliban leadership to surrender Saudi exile bin Laden or face massive U.S. military reprisals.

In Kandahar, the delegation was currently meeting Foreign Minister Abdul Wakil Mutwakkal.

The delegation is headed by Director General for Inter Service Intelligence Lt. Gen. Mahmood Ahmad, who returned from Washington on Sunday night after participating in detailed discussions with senior U.S. administration officials.

Mahmood was in Washington at the time of the terrorist attacks and it is believed he can convey to the Taliban leaders Washington's mood and determination to respond to this act of terrorism.

Aziz Khan, another secretary from the Foreign Office, was also part of the Pakistan's team, which is making the last-ditch effort to convince the Taliban to hand over bin Laden.

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