U.S. Envoy Discusses Afghan Peace Plan With Regional Stakeholders
U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad met with ministers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan to discuss the peace process in Afghanistan. He also held a virtual meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah about progress toward intra-Afghan talks (TOLO)
Russia Offered Bounties to Taliban to Kill U.S. Troops in Afghanistan
Russia offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing coalition forces in Afghanistan, including U.S. troops, according to multiple media reports citing U.S. officials (New York Times)
The bounties are believed to have resulted in the death of several U.S. service members (Washington Post)
Afghanistan Reportedly Sees Deadliest Week in Nineteen-Year War
The Taliban killed 291 Afghan security personnel over the past week, an Afghan government official said, calling it the deadliest week in the country’s nineteen-year war. The Taliban disputed the number and said it had acted defensively (Agence France-Presse)
United States Reduces Troops in Afghanistan to 8,600
The United States has reduced the number of troops in Afghanistan in accordance with a U.S.-Taliban deal, said the general overseeing U.S. forces in the region (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
NATO Reiterates Commitment to Afghanistan Peace Process
The head of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) stressed the alliance’s commitment to the Afghan peace process and urged the Taliban to live up to commitments agreed to in a deal signed with the United States, including breaking ties with al-Qaeda (TOLO)
Red Cross Warns of Civilian Death in Afghanistan
The International Committee of the Red Cross expressed “great concern” regarding the rising number of civilian casualties in Afghanistan, citing the recent attacks on healthcare facilities (Al Jazeera)
Separately, at least seventeen Afghan soldiers were killed in two attacks by the Taliban, Afghan officials said, and others were wounded or taken hostage. The group has killed or wounded more than four hundred Afghan personnel in recent weeks, the Afghan government said (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Afghan Government and Taliban Agree on Location for Talks
The Afghan government and the Taliban have agreed to hold intra-Afghan peace talks in Doha, Qatar. A spokesperson for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said only the location of the initial meeting has been agreed to (Voice of America)
U.S. Threatens Sanctions Over ICC Probe of War Crimes in Afghanistan
The Trump administration warned that International Criminal Court investigators looking into charges of war crimes by U.S. troops in Afghanistan will face sanctions, including economic penalties and travel restrictions. The ICC called the move an attack on the court that undermined the rule of law (New York Times)
U.S. General: Taliban Has Not Met Conditions for Troop Withdrawal
The Taliban has not met the conditions for the United States to withdraw its troops in Afghanistan by next May, the commander of U.S. forces in the country said. The withdrawal is part of a deal the Trump administration negotiated with the Taliban (Associated Press)
U.S. Officials Meet With Taliban Leadership
U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and U.S. General Scott Miller met with the Taliban’s deputy leader in Doha, Qatar. Sources close to the Taliban said any intra-Afghan peace talks would take place in Doha (TOLO)
Taliban Escalate Attacks Across Afghanistan After Brief Cease-Fire
Following a cease-fire in May, the Taliban has initiated an average of thirty attacks each day, Afghan government sources said (TOLO)
UN: Taliban Maintaining Ties to Al-Qaeda
The Taliban still maintains close ties with al-Qaeda, according to a UN report, despite pledging to combat extremists in a deal with the United States (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
U.S. Envoy Sanguine About Intra-Afghan Peace Talks
U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said he was optimistic about progress toward the start of intra-Afghan peace talks following a reduction in violence and a prisoner swap between the government and the Taliban in May (TOLO)
Islamic State Claims Bomb Attack on Journalists in Afghanistan
A journalist and a bus driver were killed in Kabul in an attack targeting employees of a television station. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, which wounded four others (Al Jazeera)
Taliban Attack Afghan Border Outpost
At least fourteen members of the Afghan Border Force were killed in a Taliban attack, Afghan officials said. A government official said a cease-fire that began on Sunday remains in effect despite recent violent incidents (TOLO)
Taliban, Afghan Government Resume Fighting
The government blamed the Taliban for an attack that killed seven Afghan troops, the first assault since a three-day cease-fire ended on Tuesday. Afghan security forces carried out air strikes yesterday that authorities said killed eighteen militants (Agence France-Presse)
Pentagon Drafts Plans to Withdraw Troops From Afghanistan
The U.S. Defense Department is drawing up plans to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan, potentially before the U.S. presidential election in November. Under the terms of a deal signed with the Taliban in February, U.S. troops would leave the country by May 2021 if certain conditions are met (New York Times)
Afghan Government to Release Taliban Prisoners Amid Cease-Fire
The Afghan government plans to free nine hundred Taliban prisoners today amid a rare cease-fire with the militant group (Agence France-Presse)
The Taliban on Sunday announced a three-day cessation of hostilities to commemorate the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr. President Ashraf Ghani accepted the truce and announced the start of the release of up to two thousand prisoners. A spokesperson for the Afghan government said it hopes the cease-fire will be extended to allow the commencement of peace talks (NPR)
Afghan Power-Sharing Deal Includes Electoral Reform
A power-sharing agreement between Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his political rival Abdullah Abdullah includes electoral reform measures to help prevent a deadlock similar to the one that followed the country’s 2019 election, when both Ghani and Abdullah claimed victory (TOLO)
U.S. Special Envoy Calls for Reduction in Violence in Afghanistan
U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad urged a reduction in violence “by all sides” after meeting with Taliban leaders and the Afghan government in Kabul (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
U.S. Envoy in Afghanistan After Mosque Attacks
U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad arrived in Kabul to encourage peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban amid a wave of violence in the country. At least fourteen people were killed in attacks on two mosques yesterday; the Afghan government blamed the Taliban (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Power-Sharing Deal Spurs Hopes for Intra-Afghan Peace Talks
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his political rival Abdullah Abdullah signed a power-sharing agreement, a move that could pave the way for peace talks with the Taliban. Under the new deal, Ghani will remain president but Abdullah will appoint half the cabinet ministers. Abdullah will also lead peace talks with the Taliban as chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation (Washington Post)
United States Blames Islamic State for Kabul Hospital Attack
The United States said the Islamic State, not the Taliban, was responsible for a devastating attack on a Kabul hospital this week, and urged Afghans to remain committed to the intra-Afghan peace process (Reuters)
Afghan Government Resumes ‘Offensive’ Against Taliban
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani announced that the country’s military will move from “active defense” to “offensive” mode against the Taliban after a string of deadly attacks, reversing course from a strained process of rapprochement with the militant group (TOLO)
Forty people died yesterday in attacks on a hospital’s maternity ward and a funeral. The Taliban said it was not responsible for the attacks; a group affiliated with the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the funeral bombing (New York Times)
Attackers Target Afghan Maternity Hospital
Fourteen people were killed and at least eighty people were evacuated from a Kabul hospital where Doctors Without Borders runs a maternity clinic after gunmen stormed the building (Al Jazeera)
A Taliban spokesperson said the group was not responsible for the attack (CNN)