The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) in its annual World Terrorism Index has placed Afghanistan as the most-affected country on earth from the impacts of terrorism.

Negotiators in Doha on Saturday reported that both sides have exchanged their lists about the agenda of the peace negotiations and that the next phase of the talks will begin on January 5.

At least 119 Taliban rebels were killed in the latest military crackdown conducted by the Afghan defense and security forces in the past two days in southern Kandahar province, provincial officials said Saturday.

More than 28 Taliban fighters were killed and eight others were wounded during air and ground attacks in southern Urozgan province last night.

At least 26 anti-government militias including several Pakistani citizens were killed during latest clashes with Afghan security forces in southern Helmand province last night.

Amrullah Saleh, the first vice president, says the Taliban-Islamic State has warned that if one of their members is executed, they will turn Kabul into Shia massacre ground.

US Congress overwhelming passes US military budget bill that President Donald Trump has promised to veto. The United States Congress has overwhelmingly approved a national defence bill authorising an annual $740bn US military budget – the world’s largest – for the 2021 fiscal year, despite President Donald Trump’s promise to use his veto.

The United Nations General Assembly’s resolution on the situation in Afghanistan was adopted on Friday by a majority of 131 votes, supporting an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and calling on all Afghan actors to make sustained efforts to reduce and end violence in the country.

Starting with General Zia-ul-Haq’s martial law in the late 1970s, the anomaly of military control has become a permanent feature of Pakistan’s hybrid military-civilian system. Over the years it has also become a factor in tilting the balance in favor of the generals when it comes to calling the shots in framing the security and foreign policies of the state.

Two Daesh militants, who were involved in an attack on Vice President AmrullahSaleh and recent attacks in Shinwari district of Nangarhar province, have been arrested, an official said on Thursday.