Mullah Yaqub: Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan is not a “terrorist group.”
Taliban Defense Minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid, who traveled to Qatar to hold talks and sign an agreement with the Pakistani Defense Minister, said in an interview with Al Jazeera that he does not consider Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan a “terrorist group.”
He emphasized: “There is no specific and universal definition of the word terrorism and every country can call its opponents terrorists.”
These words come at a time when the Taliban is accused by regional countries and international organizations of supporting, equipping and sheltering extremist groups including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Al-Qaeda, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Jamaat Ansarullah Tajikistan and the East Turkestan Islamic Party.
A week ago, after the Pakistani army bombed some targets in Kabul and eastern Afghanistan, Taliban forces attacked Pakistani border posts along the Durand Line.
The clashes continued until Wednesday, and finally, with the mediation of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, the two sides reached a ceasefire agreement and signed an agreement to reduce tensions.
Continuing his conversation with Al Jazeera, Mullah Yaqub Mujahid emphasized that the Taliban does not want war with Pakistan and believes that problems should be resolved through dialogue.
