Two members of a Taliban-nominated committee today flew in a government helicopter to the lawless tribal belt to inform militant commanders about their first meeting with Pakistani state negotiators.
Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mohammad Ibrahim Khan and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-S spokesman Yousaf Shah reached Miranshah in North Waziristan Agency, where they will meet Pakistani Taliban leaders involved in the nascent peace process with the government.
Khan is a member of the committee appointed by the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for peace talks and Shah is its coordinator. They reached Miranshah in a helicopter provided by the Interior Ministry.
Earlier in the day, Shah was quoted by The Express Tribune daily's website as saying that peace talks will continue after the TTP's stance on the Constitution and Islamic Shariah law is known.
State negotiators have insisted that talks should be held within the ambit of the Constitution and one member of the Taliban panel pulled out of the process over this issue yesterday.
Shah said the Taliban leadership had not informed the committee about its position on conducting dialogue within the parameters of the Constitution.
The Taliban also formed a separate nine-member committee to oversee the talks. Shah and Khan will meet these nine members.
Negotiators from both sides met for the first time on Thursday to draw up a roadmap for talks aimed at ending the nearly decade-long insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives.
At that meeting, the two sides discussed each other's demands even as the government insisted that any negotiations be held within the ambit of the Constitution.
There is intense scepticism about the initiative achieving a lasting solution to the insurgency led by the TTP, which has been blamed for hundreds of bombings and suicide attacks.
State negotiators skipped an initial meeting on Tuesday, citing confusion about the Taliban's team and its ability to implement any decisions made during the talks.
