Afghanistan

Eight Afghan Soldiers Die Fighting off Taliban Attack in Kunduz

Eight Afghan soldiers were killed on Tuesday while repelling a fierce Taliban attack on Kunduz, a strategic city in northern Afghanistan that had briefly fallen to the militants twice in the past, officials said. Taliban fighters attacked several government posts on the outskirts of the city at around 1:00 am, a defense ministry statement said, triggering heavy fighting. “With the support of air force their attack was repelled,” it said, adding the fighting lasted for several hours. Defense Minister Assadullah Khalid, who visited Kunduz later on Tuesday, said the Taliban had “suffered big losses.” “Unfortunately, we have also lost eight brave soldiers,” he told reporters. Three civilians were also killed and 55 others wounded in the overall violence that rocked the city, Kunduz provincial health director Ehsanullah Afzali said. An airstrike also hit and partially damaged a clinic in the nearby district of Chardara but there were no reports of casualties, he added. “Taliban wounded fighters were also treated in that clinic,” Afzali told AFP. Both the Taliban and Afghan forces have clashed repeatedly in rural areas in recent months, but an attempt to enter a city as large as Kunduz is seen as a serious escalation. The latest violence follows a declaration …

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Afghan Forces Repel Taliban Attack on Key City: Officials

Afghan security forces on Tuesday repelled a fierce Taliban attack on Kunduz, officials said, a strategic city in northern Afghanistan that had briefly fallen to the militants twice in the past. Taliban fighters attacked several outposts of Afghan forces on the outskirts of the city at around 1:00 am, triggering fierce fighting, a defense ministry statement said. “With the support of air force their attack was repelled. Eleven Taliban were killed and eight wounded,” it said, adding that the fighting lasted for several hours. Both sides have repeatedly clashed in rural areas in recent months, but an attempt to enter a city like Kunduz is seen as a serious escalation. It follows a declaration by President Ashraf Ghani last week to resume offensive strikes against the insurgents, after a string of brutal attacks. The Taliban responded to the order by vowing to increase attacks against Afghan security forces. During Tuesday’s fighting, the insurgents managed to briefly capture an Afghan army post, killing one soldier, but it was quickly retaken by security forces, Hadi Jamal, an army spokesman in northern Afghanistan told AFP. The Taliban were not immediately available for comment. The insurgent group briefly captured Kunduz, a strategic city not far …

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Taliban Claims Afghan Bomb Attack, Demands Prisoner Release

The Taliban claimed a deadly attack on an Afghan intelligence agency post Monday, even as they urged the new power-sharing government to accelerate a prisoner swap to pave the way for talks. At least seven intelligence personnel were killed by a car bomb in the eastern province of Ghazni, Wahidullah Jumazada, spokesman for the province’s governor told AFP. “The terrorists have used a Humvee in their attack. They have targeted the National Directorate of Security unit in Ghazni city,” he said, adding that 40 people were wounded. The interior ministry in Kabul and a health official in Ghazni confirmed the car bomb. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter that their insurgents had carried out the attack. The bombing comes a day after President Ashraf Ghani and his rival Abdullah Abdullah signed a new power-sharing accord in Kabul, ending their bitter months-long feud. The agreement overcomes one of the hurdles to negotiations with the Taliban, which warned Monday that talks cannot open until a so-far piecemeal prisoner swap is completed. “That which is taking place in Kabul is only a repetition of the past failed experiences,” Suhail Shaheen, a Taliban spokesman, said on Twitter in what was the group’s first reaction to the …

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Violence increased in Afghanistan after US-Taliban deal, UN says

Violence surged in Afghanistan in the weeks after the US and the Taliban signed a deal supposed to pave the way for a peace process, UNAMA said

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Taliban refuse Afghan government ceasefire offer during Ramadan

The Taliban have dismissed a government call for a Ramadan ceasefire in Afghanistan, saying a truce is "not rational" as they ramp up attacks on government forces

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Afghan government releases 71 more Taliban prisoners under peace deal terms

The Afghan government released an additional 71 Taliban prisoners in seven provinces, bringing the number released in recent days to 432

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Taliban kill Afghan troops and civilians in latest wave of attacks

The Taliban have killed at least 23 Afghan troops and nine civilians in as a fresh wave of violence despite a deal with the US

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Kabul to ban motorbikes in bid to thwart Taliban killings and crime

A security official said that the Taliban are conducting an increasing number of targeted killings of government officials in Kabul

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US envoy Khalilzad lauds Afghanistan-Taliban prisoner releases

The US special envoy who negotiated a deal with the Taliban said that an initial prisoner exchange between the insurgents and the Afghan government was an "important step" toward peace

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Afghanistan government to release 100 Taliban prisoners in bid to save peace deal

The Afghan government will release 100 Taliban prisoners, a day after the insurgents said they were walking out of peace talks

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