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The rare statement from Omar, believed by Afghanistan to be hiding in neighbouring Pakistan, came yesterday as Muslims prepared for Eid-al-Fitr celebrations marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

The seven-page message was posted on the Taliban’s website.

Defending peace overtures with the US, which were suspended earlier this year, Omar said the “unique distinction” of this year’s summer offensive by the Taliban was that it had reached all areas of the country.

He said the offensive compelled Nato and Afghan government troops to adopt defensive positions.
Omar claimed that a spate of attacks by Afghan forces against Nato personnel was the result of Taliban infiltrating local security units.

Nato, which has about 130 000 US-led troops in Afghanistan, has acknowledged a surge in such incidents this summer, but says most are caused by cultural differences between troops and plays down the role of Taliban infiltration. — Al Jazeera.