A powerful faction of Pakistan’s Taliban announced Wednesday it has split from the main group over peace talks with the government.
The fighters led by Khan Sajna in the tribal district of South Waziristan were no longer members of the nationwide umbrella association of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), said former TTP spokesman Azam Tariq, now a member of Sajna’s group.
He did not say what the disagreement was, beyond that it concerned the peace talks launched by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in January, which have stalled since April over the insurgents’ demands.