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President Hamid Karzai has offered Taliban leaders the possibility of positions in his government if they agree to a peace deal which could bring fighting to an end
The offer was made through his brother Qayoun at a secret meeting in Saudi Arabia of which Britain was aware.
Britain has been encouraging the Kabul government to talk to its Taliban enemies for more than two years and the Americans are thought to be coming round to the idea of a deal which would end the costly war in Afghanistan.
But The Sunday Telegraph has learned that the allies would insist that the Taliban would have to split with al-Qaeda and provide information on international terrorists in Pakistan and Afghanistan as the price of a deal.
Under the Saudi Arabian initiative more than a dozen former senior Taliban figures travelled to the kingdom with the approval of President Hamid Karzai's government.
The British Government has said little about the initiative in public but British military commanders and diplomats are known to favour talking to the Taliban as a way of ending the war.
In the last year the insurgency has worsened considerably, with UN figures showing a 40 per cent rise in civilian casualties and a 40 per cent increase in insurgent attacks in the past 12 months.
There are growing fears that the weak Kabul government is not able to hold back the Taliban, which has been able to overrun a series of formerly peaceful provinces around Kabul - despite suffering grievous losses at the hands of special forces teams which are hunting down guerrilla commanders.
British intelligence sources now believe the Taliban's own ranks may be ready for a grand deal in which Taliban leaders will be allowed to return to their homes and even take positions of power and be granted immunity from prosecution.
They could even run in next September's presidential election, although granting them positions of local power in areas which they effectively control is more likely. Senior Taliban figures could enter the government as ministers.
The Americans have made it clear that while they may tolerate talks with the Taliban, no negotiation with al-Qaeda or figures linked to al-Qaeda is possible. The British are more enthusiastic about talks, raising the possibility of friction between the two allies during what promises to be a difficult process over the next few months.
Taliban leaders such as Mullah Mohammad Omar have been loyal to al-Qaeda for more than a decade, but their influence of international terrorists on the Taliban today may be less than it was. British commanders in Helmand say they have seen little sign of al-Qaeda, although American commanders believe they have been active in eastern Afghanistan. After seven years of guerrilla warfare many Afghan Taliban leaders are thought to be tired of fighting and may be prepared to betray their former colleagues.
Nick Day, CEO of Diligence Global Business Intelligence and a former Special Boat Service officer and British Intelligence agent who now monitors Islamist groups, said: "This could be the beginning of the end. The British have had a lot of quiet influence, and the interests of a lot of players may be served now by a deal. The time could be right for it.
"Giving information on al-Qaeda will be crucial though - the test which would prove that the Taliban have broken with them. But the Taliban may not know where leaders like Osama bin Laden are."
Afghan president offers Taliban a role in governing country - Telegraph
The offer was made through his brother Qayoun at a secret meeting in Saudi Arabia of which Britain was aware.
Britain has been encouraging the Kabul government to talk to its Taliban enemies for more than two years and the Americans are thought to be coming round to the idea of a deal which would end the costly war in Afghanistan.
But The Sunday Telegraph has learned that the allies would insist that the Taliban would have to split with al-Qaeda and provide information on international terrorists in Pakistan and Afghanistan as the price of a deal.
Under the Saudi Arabian initiative more than a dozen former senior Taliban figures travelled to the kingdom with the approval of President Hamid Karzai's government.
The British Government has said little about the initiative in public but British military commanders and diplomats are known to favour talking to the Taliban as a way of ending the war.
In the last year the insurgency has worsened considerably, with UN figures showing a 40 per cent rise in civilian casualties and a 40 per cent increase in insurgent attacks in the past 12 months.
There are growing fears that the weak Kabul government is not able to hold back the Taliban, which has been able to overrun a series of formerly peaceful provinces around Kabul - despite suffering grievous losses at the hands of special forces teams which are hunting down guerrilla commanders.
British intelligence sources now believe the Taliban's own ranks may be ready for a grand deal in which Taliban leaders will be allowed to return to their homes and even take positions of power and be granted immunity from prosecution.
They could even run in next September's presidential election, although granting them positions of local power in areas which they effectively control is more likely. Senior Taliban figures could enter the government as ministers.
The Americans have made it clear that while they may tolerate talks with the Taliban, no negotiation with al-Qaeda or figures linked to al-Qaeda is possible. The British are more enthusiastic about talks, raising the possibility of friction between the two allies during what promises to be a difficult process over the next few months.
Taliban leaders such as Mullah Mohammad Omar have been loyal to al-Qaeda for more than a decade, but their influence of international terrorists on the Taliban today may be less than it was. British commanders in Helmand say they have seen little sign of al-Qaeda, although American commanders believe they have been active in eastern Afghanistan. After seven years of guerrilla warfare many Afghan Taliban leaders are thought to be tired of fighting and may be prepared to betray their former colleagues.
Nick Day, CEO of Diligence Global Business Intelligence and a former Special Boat Service officer and British Intelligence agent who now monitors Islamist groups, said: "This could be the beginning of the end. The British have had a lot of quiet influence, and the interests of a lot of players may be served now by a deal. The time could be right for it.
"Giving information on al-Qaeda will be crucial though - the test which would prove that the Taliban have broken with them. But the Taliban may not know where leaders like Osama bin Laden are."
Afghan president offers Taliban a role in governing country - Telegraph
