A Taleban militant leader rejected on Monday an offer from Afghan President Hamid Karzai of safe passage for insurgent leaders who wanted to talk peace. Karzai, back from a trip to Britain and the United States, said on Sunday he would guarantee the safety of Taleban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar if he was prepared to negotiate. With the Taleban insurgency intensifying seven years after the hard-line Taleban were forced from power, the possibility of talks with more moderate Taleban leaders is increasingly being considered, both in Afghanistan and among its allies. The Afghan government says it is willing to talk to anyone who recognizes the constitution. The Taleban have ruled out any talks as long as foreign troops remain in Afghanistan. Karzai said on Sunday that condition was unacceptable. Mullah Brother, deputy leader of the Taleban, rejected Karzai's offer of safe passage and again said foreign troops had to leave before negotiations could start. “As long as foreign occupiers remain in Afghanistan, we aren't ready for talks because they hold the power and talks won't bear fruit ... The problems in Afghanistan are because of them,” Brother said. “We are safe in Afghanistan and we have no need for Hamid Karzai's offer of safety,” he told Reuters by satellite telephone from an undisclosed location, adding that the Taleban jihad, or holy war, would go on. Violence in Afghanistan has surged over the past two years, raising doubts about prospects for the country and Western efforts to establish peace and build a stable state. Some 70,000 foreign troops, around half of them American, are struggling against the Taleban, whose influence, and attacks, are spreading in the south, east and west. The prospect of a bloody, drawn-out stalemate has focused attention on the possibility of talks. Negotiations with insurgents in Iraq are seen as having contributed to an improvement in security there. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last month the United States would be prepared to reconcile with the Taleban if the Afghan government pursued talks but would not consider negotiations with Al-Qaeda. US President-elect Barack Obama has also suggested he was open to talks with more moderate Taleban leaders to explore whether the Iraq strategy would work in Afghanistan. Analysts say the government and its Western allies hope to draw moderate Taleban, or perhaps opportunistic commanders, into talks to isolate hard-liners close to Al
