Kabul, Apr. 8 : The US has held direct talks with one of Afghanistan''s biggest insurgent factions it has been reported.

According to The Telegraph, a deputy to Richard Holbrooke, the new US envoy to the region, has met with a deputy of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar according to the Afghan media.

Hekmatyar, who leads the Hizb-i-Islami party, is a key figure in the country''s Taliban-led insurgency.

Afghan media reported that Daud Abedi, his deputy, had met with the US official to discuss what role Hizb-i-Islami could play in ending the Afghan conflict.

US State Department officials were not immediately available to confirm the reports. (ANI)