According to the reports, the Taliban have killed at least 10 deminers and injured another 16 of them in an ambush in northern Baghlan province, the Ministry of Interior confirmed. In a statement published by the Ministry of Interior, the Taliban militants have attacked the mine-clearance organization camp last night, storming them with bullets, killing at least 10 of them. […]

Pakistan has refused to host U.S drone bases on its soil as Washington seeks to continue its counterterrorism operation in Afghanistan after a military pullout, local media reported, citing Pakistani government officials. A report carried by Dawn on Wednesday also said Pakistani officials have privately begun confirming a secret visit to Islamabad made by U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William […]

The U.S. military estimates that it has pulled out more than 50 percent of its equipment and troops from Afghanistan. “U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) estimates that we have completed greater than 50% of the entire retrograde process,” the command, which oversees operations in the Middle East and Central Asia, said in a press release on Tuesday. CENTCOM also said the […]

Lawmakers and analysts on Tuesday criticized the government’s security strategy following the fall of two new districts to the Taliban in the last 24 hours. Complaints included the alleged failure of Afghan forces to fight in an offensive mode, and for failing to supply provisional outposts. The centers of Jaghato and Band Ab districts in Ghazni, and Dawlat Abad district […]

Thousands of Afghan interpreters, who helped the U.S. military in its two decades in the country, may be at risk. There are growing calls on Capitol Hill to help them relocate to the United States. As U.S. troops pull out of Afghanistan, thousands of local interpreters may be at risk. There are growing calls on Capitol Hill to help those […]

The New York Times on Sunday published a report outlining the CIA’s struggle to put together a new counterterrorism strategy as US troops withdraw from Afghanistan. “The CIA is seeking ways to maintain its intelligence-gathering, war-fighting and counterterrorism operations in the country,” The New York Times reported, citing CIA analysts warning of the “ever-growing risks” of a Taliban takeover. The […]

The center of Shahrak district in the central province of Ghor fell to the Taliban on Sunday evening, local officials confirmed on Monday. Ghor governor Abdul Zahir Faiz Zada said security forces have evacuated all government offices in the center of the district to prevent civilian casualties in the clashes between security forces and the Taliban. “Soon an operation will […]

US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, currently on a regional tour amid the withdrawal of American and coalition forces from Afghanistan, says two options remain for Afghanistan at this critical juncture: A political solution to the conflict or continued war. He reiterated that the United States will not abandon Afghanistan despite US troops leaving. In his first interview with TOLOnews after […]

The UN special envoy on Afghanistan Jean Arnault met with Iranian foreign minister’s advisor Mohammad-Ebrahim Taherian on Monday in Tehran to discuss the Afghanistan situation. According to Iran’s IFP news, the two sides discussed Afghan peace talks and the security situation in the country. Taherian said Iran considers Afghanistan’s peace and security as its own, and supports the peace process […]

The US has completed about half of its withdrawal from Afghanistan and remains on track to meet the September 11 deadline to leave, US General Frank McKenzie said on Monday. The head of the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said the coming months would be critical for Afghanistan’s future and urged the Afghan government and the Taliban to resume stalled […]