Hizb chief ready to respond to ’sincere’ talks offer

JAMMU - Syed Salahuddin, the Pakistan-based leader of the Hizbul Mujahideen, has voiced his willingness to talk to New Delhi if a “sincere offer” is made by the Indian government, a local newspaper said Friday.

“If the government of India accepts Kashmir as a core issue and comes out with a sincere offer for talks to resolve (the) Kashmir issue, we are ready to respond positively,” the militant leader said in an interview to news agency Kashmir News Service published in the Kashmir Times Friday.

The militant leader, who heads the United Jehad Council, also indicated that the amalgam of 14 militant outfits would be willing to intervene if a solution “emerges during the course of talks”.