U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad will try to advance a sluggish Afghan peace process on a trip to Qatar, India, and Pakistan, the State Department said on May 6. “At each stop, he will urge support for an immediate reduction in violence, accelerated timeline for the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, and cooperation among […]
Afghan Spy Agency Says ‘IS-Haqqani’ Cell Busted In Kabul
KABUL — Afghanistan’s intelligence agency says it has busted a joint “terrorist” cell of the Islamic State (IS) group and the Haqqani network, a powerful Taliban faction. Five members of the cell were killed and eight others arrested when security forces stormed two hideouts of the group in Kabul and the Shakar Dara district, some […]
U.S. Says Taliban Not Living Up To Commitments
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has said the Taliban is not living up to its commitments as militant violence is increasingly threatening a fragile deal signed with Washington this year.After extended talks in Qatar, the Taliban and the United States signed an agreement on February 29 for reduced violence and a move toward talks with […]
Taliban Urges Afghan Government To Speed Up Prisoner Release
The Taliban has called on the Afghan government to speed up the release of prisoners in order to pave the way for negotiations with the militant movement. A landmark deal signed by the United States and the Taliban on February 29 calls for the Afghan government to release 5,000 Taliban fighters as a confidence-building measure […]
HRW Calls For Investigation Into ‘Shocking’ Allegation Of Iranian Border Guards Drowning Afghan Migrants
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for a “thorough investigation” into “shocking” allegations that Iranian border guards beat and then forced a group of Afghan migrants into a river. Afghan officials said up to 70 migrants last week illegally crossed into Iran, where they were beaten, tortured, and then forced into a river by Iranian […]
Taliban Attacks Afghan Military Center, Casualties Reported
An attack at a military center in Afghanistan’s southern Helmand Province has reportedly caused casualties. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack on the center where at least 150 members of Afghan army and intelligence wing were stationed. The Taliban claimed that “dozens” of Afghan soldiers had been killed in the attack which occurred […]
Afghanistan Probes Reports Of Migrant Drownings By Iranian Border Guards
Afghan officials on May 3 launched an operation to locate and retrieve bodies of migrants from a river in western Herat Province after reports that Iranian border guards had thrown Afghans into the river to prevent their entry into Iran. In a statement on May 2, the Afghan Foreign Ministry said a probe had been […]
Afghan President, Chief Rival Reach ‘Tentative Agreement’ To End Months-Long Feud
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his rival, Abdullah Abdullah, appeared close to ending a months-long political crisis that has undermined peace talks with the Taliban and the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Abdullah said in a series of tweets on May 1 that progress in negotiations with Ghani to end the political impasse “reached […]
U.S. Watchdog Warns Of Pending Coronavirus Disaster In Afghanistan
A watchdog report to the U.S. Congress has warned that Afghanistan is likely to face a health disaster in the coming months brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The April 30 report by the U.S. Special Inspector-General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has heightened concerns that the pandemic could derail stalled peace efforts brokered by the […]
Afghans Claim Foreign Combatants Fighting Alongside Taliban In Violation Of Peace Deal
Afghan officials say hundreds of foreign combatants are fighting alongside Taliban militants in a strategic northern province, a move that if proven true would violate the terms of the U.S.-Taliban peace agreement. Zakaria Sawda, the governor of the northeastern province of Badakhshan, said around 400 foreign militants, mostly from neighboring Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, had joined […]
Afghanistan Suicide Bombing Kills At Least Three, Wounds 15
A suicide bombing in Kabul Province close to the Afghan capital killed three people and wounded 15 on April 29, the Interior Ministry said. “A suicide bomber detonated his explosives among civilians in the Reshkhor area of Char Asiab district of Kabul on Wednesday morning,” ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said in a statement. Chabar Asiab […]
Afghan Women, Girls With Disabilities Face Discrimination, Obstacles: HRW
Human Rights Watch (HRW) says Afghan women and girls with disabilities are being confronted with barriers, discrimination, and sexual harassment when trying to obtain government assistance, health care, and education. A report published on April 28 from the right groups details the obstacles that Afghan women and girls with disabilities face on a daily basis […]
More Than 500 Afghan Civilians, Including Many Children, Killed In First Quarter, Says UN
More than 500 civilians, almost a third of them children, were killed and 760 were wounded due to the fighting in Afghanistan in the first three months of this year, the UN said in a report on April 27, stressing the need to better protect civilians amid the threat posed to all Afghans by the […]
U.S. Envoy Calls On Taliban To Observe Cease-Fire During Ramadan, Coronavirus Crisis
The U.S. special envoy for Afghan reconciliation has asked the Taliban to observe a cease-fire on “humanitarian grounds” during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the ongoing coronavirus crisis. In a series of tweets on April 26, U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said the Taliban should “reduce violence” and “stop all their offensive operations” until […]
Taliban Rejects Afghan Cease-Fire Offer During Ramadan
The Taliban has rejected a Ramadan cease-fire offer from the Afghan government, saying such a move is “not rational” amid disagreements over the peace process.The offer was made by President Ashraf Ghani on April 23 ahead of the start of Islam’s holy month of Ramadan as Afghanistan battles the growing coronavirus pandemic.Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen […]
Afghan Government Releases More Taliban Prisoners Before Ramadan
Ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the Afghan government has released another 55 Taliban prisoners, the National Security Council has said. Council spokesman Javed Faisal said in a tweet the detainees were released on April 22 from nine provinces — Paktia, Logar, Badakhshan, Jawzjan, Ghazni, Baghlan, Khost, Paktika, and Maidan Wardak — as […]
Kabul Frees Dozens More Taliban Prisoners In Step Toward Peace Talks
KABUL — Afghanistan says it has released another 71 Taliban prisoners in a further step toward bringing the two sides together to negotiate a peace settlement.Javed Faisal, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said in a tweet that detainees had been released from seven prisons in the Nangarhar, Laghman, Kunar, Nuristan, Faryab, Uruzgan, and […]
Nineteen Pro-Government Forces Killed In Afghan Attacks
KABUL — Afghan officials say 19 pro-government forces have been killed in Taliban attacks in the northern province of Takhar. The Taliban militants attacked local forces operating under the command of the Afghan National Army in Khwaja Ghar district from several directions overnight, district chief Mohammad Omar said on April 20. Omar said the fighting […]
Afghans Among Unaccompanied Children Evacuated From Greek Refugee Camps To Germany
A group of 47 unaccompanied children evacuated from refugee camps in Greece arrived in Germany on April 18, German officials said.The children come from Afghanistan, Syria, and Eritrea. Four are girls and there are several siblings among the group. Some of them have families waiting for them in Germany.They were previously housed at refugee camps […]
Gunmen Kill Six Local Contractors Near Main U.S. Base In Afghanistan
Gunmen have shot dead six local contractors who worked at the main U.S. military base in Afghanistan. Wahida Shahkar, the spokeswoman for the governor of Parwan Province, said the incident occurred late April 16 some 500 meters from Bagram Airfield, north of Kabul. Shahkar said the contractors, most of them cleaners, were in a vehicle […]
Taliban Says It Released 20 More Afghan Government Prisoners
The Taliban says it has released a second group of Afghan security forces it has been holding captive as part of a delayed swap considered key to paving the way for peace talks between the two sides. Suhail Shaheen, the spokesman for the Taliban’s political office in Qatar, said on Twitter late on April 16 […]
Taliban Kills Nine Afghan Soldiers In Attack On Army Post
Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry says the Taliban has killed nine government soldiers in an overnight attack on an army post in the Charkh District of Logar Province, in the eastern part of the country.Fawad Aman, a spokesman at the ministry, told RFE/RL that Taliban the Taliban had suffered “heavy casualties,” in the violence, without giving further […]
Kabul To Ban Motorcycles In Bid To Improve Security
Afghan authorities say they will ban motorcycles and scooters in the capital, Kabul, for an unspecified period of time in an effort to improve security. “Most of the crimes in the city, including targeted killings and other crimes, are carried out using motorbikes,” Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said on April 14. Motorcycles and scooters […]
U.S. Envoy Meets Taliban In Doha After Start Of Prisoner Swaps
KABUL — U.S. envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad has met in Qatar with senior Taliban representatives to discuss what the U.S. State Department described as “current challenges” in implementing a peace deal signed in February by the United States and the Taliban.The talks in Doha on April 13 were announced by Washington after an initial […]
U.S. Envoy Calls Afghan Prisoner Releases ‘Important Step’ Toward Peace
U.S. envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad, who negotiated a deal with the Taliban, has welcomed a prisoner exchange between the militants and the Afghan government as an “important step” toward peace. “Both sides should accelerate efforts to meet targets specified in the U.S.-Taliban agreement as soon as possible,” Khalilzad said on Twitter on April 13, […]
Afghan Government Releases 100 More Taliban Prisoners
The Afghan government has released 100 more Taliban prisoners, the Afghan National Security Council (NSC) said on April 12. The NSC posted several photos of the prisoners on Twitter and said that they had been released on April 11. The council said in a statement that the health condition, age, and length of the remaining […]
U.S. General Meets With Afghan Taliban Officials To Discuss ‘Need To Reduce Violence’
The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, Austin Miller, has met with representatives of the Taliban’s political office in Doha to discuss the reduction of violence, officials said.A spokesman for the U.S. military, Sonny Leggett, said Miller had a meeting with “select Taliban leaders” in which they discussed the “need to reduce the violence.”Leggett […]
Kabul Refuses To Send Captured IS Leader To Pakistan
KABUL — Afghanistan’s government says it will not hand over a captured Islamic State (IS) militant leader to Pakistan because there is no formal extradition treaty between Kabul and Islamabad.The Afghan government announced its position on April 10, a day after Pakistan called for Afghanistan to hand over Aslam Farooqi — the captured leader of […]
Taliban Militants Kill Five Afghan Bank Employees, Police Say
Five employees of a state-owned bank have been killed by Taliban militants in the western Afghan province of Herat, police officials said on April 10.The men were on their way from the Kuhsan district to the provincial capital, Herat City, when they were abducted and shot dead by the militants late on April 9, local […]
Kabul To Release More Taliban Prisoners Even As Swap On Verge Of Collapse
The Afghan government has vowed to move forward with the release of dozens of Taliban militants it is holding behind bars, even though a swap between the two sides appears to have collapsed. Kabul “will release 100 Taliban prisoners today based on their health condition, age and length of remaining sentence,” Javid Faisal, spokesman for […]