Afghan Peace Deal in Tatters, Near Collapse
The Afghan government will release 100 Taliban prisoners on Wednesday, an official said, a day after the Taliban said they were walking out of talks with Kabul.
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Afghanistan
200,000 Afghans Flee Iran: How Many Bringing Virus Home?
Mahdi Noori, a young Afghan refugee in Iran, was left jobless when the factory where he’d worked cutting stone was shut down because of the coronavirus. He had no money, was afraid of contracting the virus and had no options. So he headed home.
Read moreTaliban Team Arrives in Kabul to Monitor Prisoner Release
A three-member Taliban technical team arrived Tuesday in the Afghan capital to monitor the release of their prisoners as part of a peace deal signed by the Taliban and the U.S., a spokesman for the insurgent group said.
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Do as They Say, Not as They Do
The State Department has advised against all international travel because of the coronavirus, but that didn’t stop Secretary of State Mike Pompeo from flying to Afghanistan this week.
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US Slashes Aid to Bickering Afghanistan
The Trump administration is slashing $1 billion in assistance to Afghanistan and threatening more reductions in all forms of cooperation after the country’s rival leaders failed to agree on forming a new government.
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Pompeo in Kabul as Peace Process Teeters
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in the Afghan capital Monday amid a lengthy political crisis, a raging Taliban insurgency and rising coronavirus cases — all of which threaten an already-floundering peace process.
Read more24 Afghan Security Forces Killed in Insider Attack
At least two dozen Afghan security forces were killed Friday in an insider attack at their base in southern Afghanistan, officials said, as fighting raged in the war-weary country and efforts to start talks with the Taliban stalled.
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US Begins Pulling Troops From Afghanistan
American forces have started pulling out of two bases in Afghanistan, a U.S. official said Tuesday, the day peace talks between Kabul and the Taliban were due to start despite widespread violence and a political crisis.
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Afghanistan’s Dueling Leaders to Hold Parallel Inaugurations
Afghanistan’s two rival leaders were preparing to hold parallel presidential inaugurations Monday, after they failed to reach a deal in the face of a unified and resurgent Taliban.
Read moreDozens Killed in Attack on Afghan Political Rally
At least 27 people were killed in an attack on a political rally in Kabul on Friday, in the deadliest assault in Afghanistan since the United States signed a withdrawal deal with the Taliban.
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Hague Court Reopens Probe of US War Crimes in Afghanistan
American soldiers could face charges for war-time abuses in Afghanistan after the International Criminal Court ruled Thursday to reopen an investigation.
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Taliban Attack Afghan Army Bases, Seeking Edge
The Taliban launched more than a dozen attacks on Afghan army bases, officials said Tuesday, hours after ending a partial truce and throwing into doubt peace talks with Kabul.
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US ‘Reduction in Violence’ in Afghanistan to Start Saturday
A permanent ceasefire between U.S. forces and the Taliban in Afghanistan is on the horizon as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Friday plans to sign a peace accord next week.
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Taliban Tell Washington to Take It or Leave It
The Taliban have issued an ultimatum to Washington after weeks of talks with a U.S. peace envoy, demanding a reply to their offer of a seven-day reduction of violence in Afghanistan, or they would walk away from the negotiating table, two Taliban officials said Wednesday.
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Suicide Bombing Kills 6 Near Kabul Military School
A suicide bomber targeting a military academy in the Afghan capital on Tuesday killed at least six people, including two civilians and four military personnel, the Interior Ministry said.
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Afghan ‘Ally’ Kills Two US Soldiers
Two U.S. soldiers were killed and six wounded in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province late Saturday when an Afghan soldier opened fire, the U.S. military said.
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Afghanistan Needs Billions More in International Aid
Afghanistan will need vast amounts of foreign money to keep its government afloat through 2024, a U.S. agency said Friday, even as foreign donors are increasingly angry over the cost of debilitating corruption and the United States seeks a peace deal with Taliban to withdraw U.S. troops from the country.
Read moreTerror Attacks Drop in Troubled Pakistan
Terror attacks in Pakistan plummeted by more than 85% over the past decade. It’s a welcome statistic for the country, but one that risks being overshadowed by international concern about its efforts to curb terror funding and lingering militant activity that could test any future peace agreement in neighboring Afghanistan.
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US Bombing of Afghanistan Hits 10-Year High
American warplanes dropped more bombs on Afghanistan in 2019 than at any other time in at least a decade, according to the U.S. Air Force, as Washington intensified attacks in the country during withdrawal talks with the Taliban.
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Thousands of Taliban Await Release From Prisons
Thousands of Taliban prisoners jailed in Afghanistan see a peace deal allegedly being hammered out between the United States and the Taliban as their ticket to freedom.
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