There are several reasons for the collapse of the Afghan army, but a duplicitous US negotiation with the Taliban was the most potent, and the insurgents exploited the uncertainty brilliantly. President Joe Biden’s claim that the Afghan army ‘did not have the resolve’ to fight for its own country would …

Protests against Taliban rule in Afghanistan spread to several cities ahead of the first Friday prayers since the militant group took control last Sunday. In Kabul, around 200 people gathered at one protest on Thursday, the country’s independence day, before Taliban fighters dispersed them violently. Several people were killed in …

On Tuesday, Russian warplanes launched airstrikes on sites of Turkish-backed armed factions south and north of Idleb, northwest Syria. Russian Sukhoi Su-35 warplanes targeted armed factions’ fortifications in the vicinity of the Sheikh Bahr area, and the outskirts of the town of Mashon, located in the northern and the southern …