The Taliban’s chief negotiator says in newly released remarks that the United States is on the verge of defeat and will quit Afghanistan soon “either of their own accord, or they will be forced out.”

Authorities in Afghanistan said Saturday coalition airstrikes in an eastern province have killed up to 50 Islamic State militants, while Taliban insurgents have killed at least seven government forces in a western district.

Peace talks between the Taliban and a U.S. peace envoy over a timetable for the withdrawal of American troops in Afghanistan are narrowing a gap between the two sides, a spokesman for the insurgent group said Saturday.

While testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) in July 2016, Zalmay Khalilzad said that Pakistan should be designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism because it is an ardent supporter of the Taliban. He described the Taliban as an “extremist organization” with enduring ties to al Qaeda.

Attendees at Afghanistan’s most important national gathering have urged ceasefire between the government and the Taliban militant group as a foretaste to a potential peace deal.

A decision by U.S. military officials in Afghanistan to stop tracking the amount of territory controlled by the Taliban is sparking an increasingly tense showdown with the watchdog overseeing reconstruction efforts.

Pakistan says it is “highly dismayed” at the recent surge in hostilities in Afghanistan “from all sides,” warning it would harm ongoing efforts to bring peace to the war-ravaged neighboring country.

Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, is bracing for a peace jirga – a traditional gathering of elders and prominent Afghans – with heightened security next week, as nearly 3,000 delegates from across the country stream into the city.

Russia, the United States and China will this week try to press Afghanistan’s Taliban insurgents to hold talks with Afghan politicians and civilians, an important step in a process aimed at ending the Afghan war.

KABUL: Afghan Taliban insurgents are battling fighters loyal to Daesh over control of territory in eastern Afghanistan in some of the heaviest clashes over the past year between the rival militants, officials said on Wednesday.