Afghan Taliban leaders in Pak: US commander in Afghanistan

The US knows that the Afghan Taliban leaders are based in the Pakistani cities of Quetta and Peshawar, the top US commander in Afghanistan has said, evoking a sharp reaction from Islamabad against blaming Pakistan for the situation in Afghanistan.
General John Nicholson, the commander of US Forces and NATO in Afghanistan, said the issue of terror sanctuaries was "being addressed in private between the US government and the Pakistani government - but it does need to be addressed."
"Support for terrorists and insurgents has to be reduced, has to be stopped," Nicholson was quoted as saying by Tolo News of Afghanistan.

"I am primarily focused on activities inside Afghanistan," but other officials are looking into the issue of sanctuaries in Pakistan, Gen. Nicholson had said.
"The Quetta Shura, Peshawar Shura, these shuras are identified by cities inside Pakistan, we know Afghan Taliban leaders are in these areas," he said.
Reversing course from an earlier stand that he would end US involvement in Afghanistan, a 16-year conflict that has cost American lives and trillions of dollars, US President Donald Trump had hit out at Pakistan, which he said was offering safe haven to "agents of chaos".

Meanwhile, Gen. Nicholson's remarks have elicited a sharp reaction from Islamabad, which has been fuming over President Donald Trump's recent warning to Islamabad against providing safe havens to terrorists.

Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal said that the Taliban were using Afghanistan as the launch pad for their operations, both inside and outside Pakistan.
He said the Taliban had no need to hide in Pakistan, since they held more than 40 per cent of Afghanistan.
"If they have control over so much land and resources in Afghanistan, it means they have hideouts there, not in Pakistan," Iqbal told Dawn newspaper.
Pakistan, he said, had made the commitment that it would not allow any group to use its soil against any other country, including Afghanistan.
Separately, Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, who scrapped a planned visit to Washington following Trump's remarks about Pakistan, said the US should refrain from blaming its 16 years of failures in Afghanistan on Pakistan.

"America used Pakistan as its ally, but Pakistan suffered unbearable losses in the war on terror. If the US doesn't trust Pakistan, it should make preparations to repatriate the Afghan refugees Pakistan has been hosting for nearly 35 years," he told Geo News yesterday.
"We want to clear misunderstandings with the US by maintaining this relationship," Asif said.
He said that peace in Afghanistan was important for Pakistan too, which was why Islamabad was helping the US in trying to find a solution to the Afghan issue.