The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has put forward an offer for peace talks to the Pakistani government.
Talking to media from an unknown location, the TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid and senior leader Azam Tariq said Taliban were ready for meaningful, serious and result-oriented dialogue. They said they believe in the utility of dialogue and had never refused negotiations.
They said they rejected the dialogue earlier because, according to them, the government was neither sincere nor powerful enough. They said if the government wanted to create a peaceful and trustworthy environment, it would have to announce a ceasefire. In such a case, they can also review their activities. They said they strongly condemn the blast at Peshawar Tableegi Markaz as they do not attack the Muslims. They blamed the secret agencies for such acts to bring a bad name to Taliban.
They said that SP Chaudhry Aslam met his fate and they are proud that a case was framed against the TTP for his murder.
In reply to a question, Azam Tariq said that the government considers propaganda over the media as part of its war but they believe in truth and facts and not the media. He said the government never made serious effort for talks with the TTP.
Shahidullah Shahid said there is a war going on between them and the government. They rejected the dialogue because their Amir was killed to sabotage the dialogue and it proved that the government was not serious in talks.