Afghanistan

The U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to caution President Donald Trump against swift U.S. troop withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan. Trump revealed his decision to withdraw all U.S. forces from Syria in December, declaring that the U.S. had defeated Islamic State and no longer needed to deploy troops in Syria.

The U.S. special representative for Afghan reconciliation is urging direct talks between the Taliban and the Kabul government as he confirmed details in a draft peace deal aimed at ending the 17-year conflict in the country.

The US military in Afghanistan has halted most face-to-face contacts with the Afghan security forces and has temporarily withdrawn troops from Afghan security facilities after recent “insider” shootings, US media reported on Thursday.

The ‘conditional ceasefire’ starts on Monday and will be in place for around three months, ‘provided the Taliban reciprocate’, said President Ashraf Ghani. Afghanistan on Sunday declared a “conditional” ceasefire with Taliban militants ahead of the Eid-al-Adha festival this week. The ceasefire starts on Monday and will be in place …

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani congratulated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan on his victory in the general election…“I extended an open invitation to Mr Khan and he expressed his wishes to visit Kabul soon,” he added.

Senior Iranian official Mohammad-Javad Larijani referred to the U.S. 9/11 Commission Report, and said that in some cases, Al-Qaeda members travelling from Saudi Arabia to Afghanistan and elsewhere were allowed to pass through Iran without having their passports stamped. Larijani, who heads Iran’s Human Rights Council and is a top …

In an open letter to the “American people,” the Taliban militant group has claimed it is willing to enter into “peaceful dialog” to end the 17-year war in Afghanistan. According to copies of the nearly 3,000-word letter, released by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in several languages on Wednesday, the group …

The United States government on Monday released $100 million in budget assistance to Afghanistan. The agreement was signed between Afghan Finance Minister Iklil Hakimi and U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan John Bass in Kabul.

At least 54 rebels were killed and several others sustained injuries during clashes with Afghan security forces in the past 24-hours across Afghanistan, said Ministry of Defense on Friday. The casualties inflicted on the insurgents in Nangarhar, Ghazni, Paktia, Kandahar, Zabul, Farah, Balkh, Jawzjan, Faryab, Kunduz, Baghlan, and Helmand provinces …

NATO Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan Cornelius Zimmermann has stressed timely holding of upcoming election, saying, “With transparent polls, people’s trust in the democratic process increases.” Zimmermann made the remarks during a meeting with a number of Afghan journalists at his office. He said the new US strategy on Afghanistan …