The Ministry of Defense says Afghan forces are patrolling along the highways regularly. Key routes in northern Afghanistan including the Baghlan-Kunduz and Baghlan-Balkh highways remain insecure for commuters, residents of the provinces said, adding that the Taliban has established checkpoints close to the government forces’ establishments in some areas.

The attack happened on an army outpost in the Gandumak area in Shirzad district of Nangarhar province. Eight security force members were killed in a car bomb explosion that targeted a civil order forces unit in Shirzad district of the eastern province of Nangarhar on Saturday morning, the provincial governor’s office confirmed.

A presidential aide has asked the Taliban to honour the commitments to peace before making fresh demands. Over the past two years, the government had taken a string of steps towards peace, Waheed Omer told reporters here on Saturday.

Three Taliban militants have been killed, five wounded and four others detained during security forces’ operations in northern Balkh and Samangan provinces, said the 209th Shaheen Military Corps on Sunday.

Suspected militants gunned down a religious scholar inside his home in southern Kandahar province on Sunday, police said.

Thirty-six militants have been killed and five others injured during security forces operation in the Arghandab district of southern Kandahar province, an official said on Sunday.

National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib on Sunday said political appointments and promotions in security forces should be strictly avoided in order to protect the rights of all security personnel.

The European Union and other diplomatic missions in Afghanistan including Australia, Canada, the UK, the US and NATO, all called out the Taliban on Sunday and demanded an end to the violence and to the destruction of vital infrastructure installations.

International troops plan to stay in Afghanistan beyond the May deadline envisaged by the insurgent Taliban’s deal with the United States, four senior NATO officials told Reuters. The move could however escalate tensions with the Taliban which is demanding a full withdrawal.

During talks with a visiting Taliban delegation, Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Sunday called for the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan.