Pakistan’s Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif has decided to hold peace talks with Taliban and has formed a peace committee to plan strategy for the talks.
The announcement came at the time when there was strong speculation that the government would authorize large-scale operations against the militants.
Sharif said he is trying to restore peace in the country and expressed his hope that the other side would reciprocate.
Sharif said that he agreed with the proposals of two major political parties the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) to hold open and transparent talks with the Taliban.
The announcement came the same day militants targeted paramilitary soldiers, killing at least three law enforcement personnel in a separate of bomb attack in Karachi. Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) later claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The Taliban is united under Moulvi Fazlullah, the man behind the attack on Mala Yousef Zai in 2011 and considered a hardliner.
The peace committee is headed by Prime Minister, Sharif, senior journalist Rahimullah Yousafzai, former Ambassador Rustam Shah Mohmand, former ISI official MajAmir Shah and columnist Irfan Siddiqui.
