Taliban Rules Out Cooperation With US To Contain Islamic State In Afghanistan: Report

The Taliban has refused to cooperate with the United States to contain extremist groups in Afghanistan including the Islamic State (IS).

The development comes ahead of the meeting between the senior US and Taliban officials in Qatar's Doha next week. This will be the first talks between both sides since the US forces withdrew from Afghanistan in August.

Officials from both sides have said issues include reining in extremist groups and the evacuation of foreign citizens and Afghans from the country. The Taliban have signaled flexibility on evacuations, reports Indian Express.

Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen has told the Associated Press (AP) that they wouldn’t be cooperating with the US to go after the IS which claimed responsibility for several terrorist attacks in Afghanistan in the last couple of months.

IS has also claimed responsibility for a recent suicide bombing that killed 46 minority Shiite Muslims and wounded dozens as they prayed in a mosque.

“We are able to tackle Daesh independently,” Shaheen was quoted by the AP.

The meeting between Taliban and US will come after two days of difficult discussions regarding Afghanistan that took place between the Pakistani officials and US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in Islamabad.