Taliban making contacts to return home: Karzai

Kabul, Nov 22 (UNI) Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the Taliban representatives were increasingly contacting him for seeking ways to return to the country.

Addressing a joint press conference with NATO secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer President Karzai said, ''there had been an increasing number of contacts from the Taliban within Afghanistan and Pakistan.'' These contacts had increased especially in the last seven or eight months Mr Karzai said, adding that in the last month alone he had received five or six major contacts and approaches from the Taliban leaders.

The leaders had been trying to find if they could return to Afghanistan.

Mr Karzai added that the government was willing to talk to those representatives of the Taliban who were not a part of the Al Qaeda or other terrorist groups, those who did not want violence and allowed children to go to school. Those elements which wanted peace and stability in Afghanistan were welcome, he added.

UNI