Taliban talks in sight as Afghan political rivals end feud

On Sunday, Ghani said it was an "historic day" for Afghanistan and the agreement was reached without any international mediation, referring to the 2014 power-sharing deal that was mediated by the US.Abdullah said the deal commits to forming a "more inclusive, accountable and competent administration".As the head of the HCNR, Abdullah has a big challenge ahead as the deal comes amid rising violence after which President Ghani announced the launch of a military offensive against the Taliban and other armed groups.A broad political consensus is crucial when Kabul sits face-to-face with the Taliban as part of the intra-Afghan peace talks, Sami Yousufzai, an Afghan journalist who has followed the Taliban, told Al Jazeera."In this crucial time when the Taliban are still conducting attacks against government forces and civilians are being killed in attacks claimed by [ISIL], this agreement has strengthened the Afghan government's position and weakened Taliban's," Yousufzai said."A tough message goes to the Taliban that despite such political divides, they would all sit unified in front of the Taliban."Abdullah's team called the power-sharing deal "an opportunity for peace"."We have said many times before that we are ready for peace, it is our priority, that was our position from the beginning," Fraidoon Khawzoon, Abdullah's spokesman, told Al Jazeera."The High Council for National Reconciliation lead by Abdullah will now establish a mechanism for peace that will be different from the ones in the past.