Ariana: US special envoy for Afghanistan’s reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad met with senior Taliban leaders including Mullah Baradar in Qatar on Wednesday to discuss provisions of the US-Taliban agreement signed in Doha last year. Specific topics discussed included the release of the remaining Taliban prisoners, the removal of the Taliban’s name from the UN Blacklist, the
Tolo News: Some lawmakers in the lower house of the Afghan Parliament on Monday called for the arrest and prosecution of Alipoor, a local commander in Behsud district in Maidan Wardak, who is accused of downing an army helicopter in the district. The Wolesi Jirga speaker and some members said that the second vice president,
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty March 24, 2021 The Taliban has flatly rejected a proposal by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to hold snap elections within six months or a year right after a peace deal is signed with the militant group. Ghani will unveil details of his proposal at an international peace conference in Turkey in April, according
Margaret Besheer VOA News March 23, 2021 The U.N.’s top diplomat in Afghanistan sought to lower expectations of a quick peace deal between the Afghan government and Taliban, saying Tuesday that peace is possible, but it will not come immediately, as “genuine and profound differences” exist between the two sides. “Afghans and their international partners
Ariana: As the Afghan National Security and Defense Forces (ANDSF) carry out operations in Behsud district in Maidan Wardak province to arrest militia commander Abdul Ghani Alipour some MPs on Tuesday said a military approach is not the solution. These MPs said a military tactic will complicate matters further. Click here to read more (external
Ayaz Gul VOA News March 23, 2021 ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged Tuesday to consult and share with NATO allies Washington’s plans on any possible military withdrawal from Afghanistan. Washington has committed to pulling out its remaining 2,500 troops and several thousand NATO forces from the war-shattered South Asian nation
Tahir Khan VOA News March 21, 2021 ISLAMABAD – The Taliban claim they, not the U.S., originated the pending proposal for a three-month reduction in violence, or RIV, to “create a conducive atmosphere” for intra-Afghan peace negotiations, two Taliban officials told VOA Saturday. “We have floated a plan under which all related sides will reduce
Tolo News: Who is Abdul Ghani Alipoor–also known as Commander Shamshir–and why has he established an illegal armed group in his province? Where did the rift between his militia and government forces begin? Alipoor is a commander in Behsud district of Maidan Wardak province, whose armed men–according to the Defense Ministry–shot down a government security
Ariana: Abdullah Abdullah, the High Council for National Reconciliation chair, on Saturday voiced his dissatisfaction over President Ashraf Ghani’s move Friday to dismiss Interior Minister Masoud Andarabi. Abdullah stated the move was in violation of the power-sharing agreement he signed with Ghani in May last year – a deal that signaled the end of a
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty March 19, 2021 A senior Afghan official says the government and the Taliban have agreed at a meeting in Moscow to try to accelerate talks aimed at ending decades of war in the country. The March 19 meeting followed an international conference in the Russian capital on the intra-Afghan peace process,