Ranking Hezb-i-Islami members' support for government a positive sign: US

An announcement by a number of ranking members of the fundamentalist Hezb-i-Islami in support of the Afghan transitional government is a positive sign among local people, commander of the US-led coalition forces in Afghanistan said here Monday.

"This is an indicator of the broad understanding of the Afghans that the political process is underway and a part of democratic process is on the move," Lieuf General David W. Barno said at a press conference.

At a news conference given by 11 ranking members of Hezb-i-Islami the day earlier, they said that they would reject violence and rejoin the Afghan mainstream and expressed their support for the US-backed Hamid Karzai government and coalition forces in the country.

They disclosed that they had been negotiating with the transitional government as well as with the American military and coalition forces for two years, this is "a step toward peace."

The delegates held talks with President Karzai before the news conference. The decision-making council of the party will hold a meeting to decide about the future and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's fate,who was the founder and the elusive leader of the party.

Hezb-i-Islami is the third largest political party that vows todrive American and other foreign troops out of the country through jihad, or holy war. Other two political groups, the Taliban and al-Qaeda, were driven out of the power by a US-dominated campaign more than two years ago.

Hekmatyar called on his countrymen to launch jihad against US-led forces late last year, saying they were occupation troops. He was labeled by the American government as a global terrorist. His whereabouts is still unknown.

Source: Xinhua