Tolo News: President Ashraf Ghani on Monday called for a grand consultative Jirga, a traditional assembly, on the peace process in the country amid Washington’s marathon diplomatic efforts to facilitate direct talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban who has been fighting against Afghan and foreign forces over the past 18 years. “At the Jirga, people
Tolo News: The Afghan government is reportedly working on a plan to create five new provinces in the country, rising the number of provinces to 39 from the current 34. The Independent Directorate of Local Governance (IDLG) has confirmed the plan, but has not revealed details. Sources said that government might declare Shinwar district of Nangarhar, Jaghori
Tolo News: President Ashraf Ghani, who visited Nangarhar province on Sunday, said the Afghan government is ready to allow the Taliban to open an office in Kabul, Kandahar or Nangarhar. Ghani said “a sustainable peace and a peace with dignity” will come to the country and for this, he is ready to even sacrifice his life.
VOA News February 9, 2019 The top U.S. negotiator in peace talks with Afghanistan’s Taliban leaders says he hopes a peace agreement can be achieved before Afghanistan’s next set of elections just five months away. Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. special representative for Afghanistan reconciliation, spoke Friday to an audience at the United States Institute of Peace
Ayesha Tanzeem VOA News February 8, 2019 ISLAMABAD — When Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani laid out the red carpet in 2017 for controversial Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar — once known as “the Butcher of Kabul” for his role in the bloody conflict for the control of the capital in the 1990s — many thought he was
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty February 7, 2019 Taliban representatives and an Afghan delegation led by former President Hamid Karzai have said that after two days of negotiations in Russia they aim to continue their “intra-Afghan” dialogue in Qatar “as soon as possible.” Karzai led a delegation of about 40 Afghan politicians — although without representatives
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty February 6, 2019 Taliban representatives and an Afghan delegation led by former President Hamid Karzai have entered the second and final day of talks in Moscow, with the militants continuing to insist upon the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Afghanistan as a first step in the peace process. The talks
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty February 5, 2019 Taliban representatives and an Afghan delegation led by former President Hamid Karzai have begun two days of talks in Moscow billed as part of an “intra-Afghan” peace process — despite the absence of Kabul government representatives and continued militant attacks back in Afghanistan. The gathering has been criticized
Tolo News: President Ashraf Ghani on Saturday said that those forcing people to hold peace talks must avoid discussing the issue of dissolving the country’s army. He said: “Those who are forcefully bringing others to negotiate must not talk about dissolving our “lions” (army); if they are so brave, then they must come and fight