The stern message, delivered two weeks ago, underscores Trump’s concern that the absence of a unified government in Kabul threatens to unravel his tenuous Taliban peace deal.

At least seven Afghan civilians were killed when the Taliban attacked security forces in northern Balkh province, local officials said Wednesday.

Yesterday, the Afghan government announced the release of 100 Taliban prisoners in accordance with the phased releases required under an agreement signed on February 29 between the U.S. and Taliban officials.

There has been no slowdown in the Taliban’s propaganda, as two of the group’s top spokesmen continue to take to social media to tout the training of its military personnel.

An Afghan government announcement that it freed 100 Taliban prisoners Wednesday has been rejected by the militant group, putting the prospect of peace talks between the two parties in further peril.

On 29 February, the Taliban and the U.S. signed an agreement that commits the U.S. to a fourteen-month phased withdrawal of military forces in exchange for Taliban commitments to prevent Afghanistan from being used as a safe harbour for terrorists.

The Afghan government freed 100 Taliban prisoners Wednesday, a day after the insurgent group accused Kabul of foot-dragging and recalled its team from week-long meetings on a much-awaited prisoner swap between the two foes.

The Taliban has broken off talks with the Afghan government on a prisoner exchange, a main step in peace talks being brokered by the United States.

The U.S. military has rejected a claim by the Afghan Taliban that the United States is violating the terms of a peace deal signed by the two sides in late February.

Kabul, Afghanistan – When 55-year-old Khairullah from a village in Afghanistan’s northern Jawzjan province was invited to join a meeting after Friday prayers on March 27, he was not prepared for what he witnessed.