Afghanistan News

Pandemic forces polio eradication group to suspend campaigns

By AFP

Paris - The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt an unprecedented blow to the world's battle against polio, the head of the global organisation to combat the disease told AFP Thursday after it suspended vaccination campaigns for the first time in three decades.

Afghan govt holds talks with Taliban in Kabul on prisoner swap

By AFP

Kabul - Afghan government representatives have met with the Taliban in Kabul for the first time to discuss a prisoner swap aimed at jump-starting a floundering peace process, officials said Wednesday.

Afghan govt holds talks with Taliban in Kabul on prisoner swap

By AFP

Afghanistan to release up to 10,000 prisoners to slow coronavirus spread

By AFP

Kabul - Afghanistan has ordered the release of up to 10,000 prisoners -- mostly women, juveniles and sick people -- in a bid to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, officials said Thursday.

At least 25 dead in attack on Afghan Sikh-Hindu temple

By AFP

Kabul - At least 25 people were killed Wednesday in an attack on a Sikh-Hindu temple in Afghanistan's capital where worshippers were offering morning prayers, the latest brutal assault claimed by the Islamic State group.

Pompeo in highest-level US talks with Taliban to break impasse

By AFP

Doha - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo late Monday met Taliban leaders in Qatar in the highest-level talks ever between the two sides as he sought to break an impasse over Afghanistan through shuttle diplomacy.

US Secretary of State Pompeo visits Kabul amid multiple crises

By AFP

Kabul - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in the Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, a pool report said, amid an ongoing political crisis, a raging Taliban insurgency and rising coronavirus cases.

US envoy says Kabul, Taliban in first prisoner exchange talks

By AFP

Washington - The Afghan government and the Taliban on Sunday held their first discussion on arranging prisoner exchanges, a key step in a broader push for peace, the US special envoy for Afghanistan said on Twitter.

At least 24 Afghan security forces killed in insider attack

By AFP

Kabul - At least two dozen Afghan security forces were killed Friday in an insider attack on their base in southern Afghanistan, officials told AFP, as fighting raged in the war-weary country while efforts to start talks with the Taliban stalled.

Australian police probe soldier who shot unarmed Afghan

By AFP

Sydney - An Australian special forces soldier filmed shooting an unarmed Afghan man has been suspended from duty and the case referred to police, officials said.

Taliban should agree ceasefire to stop virus: Afghan minister

By AFP

Kabul - The Taliban should commit to a ceasefire as a way of tackling the novel coronavirus, Afghanistan's defence minister said Thursday, while also vowing that security forces would respond to continued insurgent attacks.

Taliban reject Afghan offer to free 1,500 prisoners before talks

By AFP

Kabul - The Taliban rejected the Afghan government's attempt to resolve a spiralling crisis over the release of insurgent prisoners Wednesday, as Kabul warned it was ready to resume offensive battlefield operations.

Taliban fought IS with 'limited' US military support, US general reveals

By AFP

Washington - The Taliban has shown that it can fight and defeat Islamic State group jihadists in Afghanistan, a top US general said Tuesday, revealing for the first time that it had done so in recent months with "very limited" US military support.

Kabul to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners if violence eases

By AFP

Kabul - The Afghan government will gradually release 5,000 Taliban prisoners starting this week if the insurgents significantly reduce violence, President Ashraf Ghani's spokesman said early Wednesday, seeking to resolve a dispute that has delayed peace talks ...

US begins military pullout from two Afghan bases

By AFP

Kabul - American forces have started pulling out of two bases in Afghanistan, a US official said Tuesday, the day peace talks between Kabul and the Taliban were due to start despite widespread violence and a political crisis.

Rockets and rivalry mar Afghan's new presidency as US starts pullout

By AFP

Kabul - Rocket fire interrupted the swearing-in ceremony Monday for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, whose second-term win has been undercut by his rival's simultaneously claiming the leadership ahead of critical peace talks with the Taliban.

Chaotic week after US-Taliban deal leaves Afghans' fate unclear

By AFP

Islamabad - A US-Taliban deal that was supposed to kickstart peace talks between the insurgents and the Kabul government is looking flimsier by the day, with fighting raging across Afghanistan and no one sure about what comes next.

Kabul victims describe scenes of carnage after attack

By AFP

Kabul - Kabul was reeling Saturday after Islamic State jihadists killed 32 people and wounded dozens more, with injured survivors describing scenes of terror as gunmen opened fire in the deadliest attack to hit Afghanistan since a US-Taliban deal.

Kabul victims describe scenes of carnage after attack

By AFP

US blocks UN statement backing Syria ceasefire: diplomats

By AFP

New York - The United States blocked the adoption of a UN Security Council statement Friday supporting a Syrian ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey, diplomats said following a closed-door meeting.

Dozens killed as gunmen attack Afghan political rally

By AFP

Kabul - Dozens of people were killed when gunmen opened fire at a political rally in Kabul on Friday, the deadliest assault in Afghanistan since the US signed a withdrawal deal with the Taliban.

Afghan war crimes probe must go ahead, ICC judges say

By AFP

Den Haag - International war crimes judges ruled on Thursday that a probe into wartime abuses in Afghanistan must go ahead, including looking into possible atrocities committed by US forces, as they overturned a previous court ruling.

Pentagon downplays new Taliban attacks

By AFP

Washington - The Pentagon on Wednesday played down the gravity of new Taliban attack in Afghanistan that cast doubts on a four-day old peace deal between the insurgent group and the United States.

NATO chief warns of hard road to Afghan peace as violence soars

By AFP

Zagreb - Western forces will only leave Afghanistan if the Taliban make good on their commitment to reduce bloodshed, the head of NATO warned Wednesday, as attacks surge.

US launches airstrike against Taliban to defend Afghan forces

By AFP

Kabul - The US launched an airstrike against Taliban fighters to defend Afghan forces Wednesday, an American military spokesman said, as violence spirals after a string of deadly attacks by the insurgents, throwing the country's nascent peace process into grav...

Trump, Taliban political chief speak as Afghan violence rises

By AFP

Washington - US President Donald Trump made the surprise announcement Tuesday that he'd had a "very good" talk with the Taliban political chief on the Afghan peace process, despite an eruption of violence marring a brief calm in the country.

Trump holds phone call with Taliban political chief Baradar

By AFP

Kabul - US President Donald Trump spoke by phone call with the leader of the Taliban, the insurgent group and the US leader said Tuesday, days after Washington signed a historic deal with the militants.

Taliban attack Afghan army bases, throwing peace talks into doubt

By AFP

Kabul - The Taliban carried out dozens of attacks on Afghan army bases, officials said Tuesday, hours after ending a partial truce and throwing into doubt peace talks between Kabul and the insurgents.

Taliban end partial truce as Afghan violence resumes

By AFP

Kabul - The Taliban called an abrupt end to a partial truce on Monday, just two days after signing a deal with the United States that was meant to bring peace at last to Afghanistan.

Taliban say will resume operations against Afghan forces

By AFP

Kabul - The Taliban said Monday they were resuming offensive operations against Afghan security forces, ending the partial truce that preceded the signing of a deal between the insurgents and Washington.