UN Chief Calls For Talks With Taliban, Safe Passage For Aid In Afghanistan

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th August, 2018) UN chief Antonio Guterres has called for a ceasefire and the start of talks between Afghanistan authorities and Taliban, his spokesman said.

"The Secretary-General stresses the urgent need for an immediate ceasefire and the opening of talks between the parties to the conflict to negotiate a sustainable peace," Stephane Dujarric said.

He conveyed condolences to those affected by last weeks Taliban offensive on the eastern Afghan city of Ghazni and demanded protection for civilians after 150 were feared killed in five days of fighting.

Guterres also demanded "rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian assistance" to Ghazni after the Taliban said it no longer guaranteed safety of Red Cross workers in Afghanistan.

The Central Asian country has recently seen an upsurge in militant violence, with Taliban assaulting Ghazni and Sunni militants believed to have detonated a bomb in a Shiite-populated area in the capital Kabul, which killed at least 48.