Summary Shahid says Ismatullah Muawiya removed from leadership after he welcomed Nawaz talks offer.
PESHAWAR (AP) - A spokesman for Pakistan s main Taliban group says the head of a side-group has been stripped of his leadership for welcoming the government s peace talk offer.
The Tahrik-e-Taliban Pakistan s spokesman Shahidullah Shahid said Saturday that the group s executive council had removed Ismatullah Muawiya from the leadership of Pujabi Taliban militants.
Shahid said in a statement that Muawiya was not authorized to respond to the Pakistan government s offer for talks. He said the group s leadership will issue later their stance on talks.
Muawiya responded to The Associated Press that the executive council didn t have the capacity to remove him because the Punjabi Taliban is a separate group. He said his group has its own decision-making body to decide leadership and other matters.
Shahidullah Shahid told by telephone on Saturday that the group rejected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif s offer to hold peace negotiations.
Shahid accused Sharif of threatening to use force if the Taliban didn t come to a negotiation table.
Shahid also condemned senior Pakistani Taliban commander Asmatullah Muawiya, who had praised the prime minister for "demonstrating political maturity" by reiterating his offer to hold peace negotiations.
On August 19, the prime minister warned that terrorism posed an "existential threat" to Pakistan.
However, he said he was ready for dialogue with "all those elements who have unfortunately adopted the path of extremism."
In related news, US Secretary of State John Kerry has assured Pakistan of Washington s continued support for Islamabad in the war against terrorism.
In a telephone conversation on August 23, Kerry and Nawaz Sharif reportedly discussed the US-led campaign against terrorism and regional security issues.
