Ayesha Siddiqa

Nothing could be clearer than the fact that there is an ever-widening divide in the perception, interests and understanding of the situation amongst the various stakeholders in Afghanistan. The regional states have their eyes on maximising benefits as the US reviews cutting its losses and bailing out of Kabul.
Although American officials explained that the Obama administration is yet to take a final decision regarding withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, it is quite clear that the US and its Nato allies are looking for an exit. This would mean finding some face-saving method for allied forces to withdraw.

Der Spiegel By Peter Neumann
Do Exit Programs for Islamists Actually Work?

It sounds like a promising idea: Instead of confronting the Taliban on the battlefield, why not pay them to give up violence? But such programs have been tried before, and they have one major disadvantage: They tend only to work when the insurgents are already losing.

Germany wants to contribute 50 million to the Taliban "exit" program in Afghanistan. The idea is to undercut support for the insurgency by helping individual Taliban leave their group, de-radicalize and re-integrate into Afghan society. Sounds like a great plan, but how do these programs actually work? And -- more importantly -- are they successful?

By Hamid Shalizi And Abdul Malek
KABUL/LASHKAR GAH (Reuters) – Taliban leaders will decide soon whether to join talks with the Afghan government, a militant spokesman said on Friday, after President Hamid Karzai invited them to a peace council aimed at ending the Afghan war.

In the country's south, suicide attackers launched an assault in the capital of Helmand, Afghanistan's most violent province, with gunmen holed up in three buildings, battling government and NATO troops who returned fire with helicopter strikes.

اعلانِ پشاور
پاکستان میں دہشت گردی کے خاتمے اور دیرپا امن کے لیے پشاور میں کام کرنے والی سول سوسائٹی کی تمام تنظیموں، 6 امن پسند سیاسی پارٹیوں، سوات ، مالاکنڈاور فاٹا کے متاثرہ علاقوں کے نمائندوں کی طرف سے متفقہ دستاویز

فائنل ڈرافٹ

Eliminating Terrorism and Establishing Sustainable Peace in the Region.

PESHAWAR DECLARATION
 

On December 12 and 13, a two days workshop/conference was held in Peshawar with the sole agenda “Terrorism - the ways out”. The workshop was attended by the political parties and civil society organizations that actively opposed terrorism. The participants were keen to contribute and participate in discussions regarding the political, ideological, strategic, economic, and cultural and education/ awareness related aspects of the agenda. The participants were divided into Five Groups and they freely expressed their opinions about the topics they had selected by choice. On the first day every group came up with a rough draft. On the second day final recommendations were drawn from the rough drafts. In a commendable show of unity, members with different political affiliations and shades of opinion succeeded in agreeing upon a single document of consensus.

Zahid Buneray

Peshawar: Chief Minister of NWFP Ameer Haidar Khan Hoti has said that his government under its political leadership will continue the journey of peace in our country and development of our people by following the philosophy of peace and tolerance of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and will render any sort of sacrifice for this purpose.

We can achieve distinction in community of nations by following the venerated principles of continuous struggle and colossal spirit of our ancestors, however, brotherhood, unity and harmony is central to this.