Diplomatic Cross

President Ashraf Ghani  Image: DOD/US Air Force Staff Sgt. Jette Carr Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani declared a provisional three-month ceasefire with the Taliban in a televised broadcast. Kabul-Anticipation had been mounting ahead of Ghani’s speech following mixed signals from the presidential palace over whether the government would offer a fresh truce – following a brief ceasefire in June. Pakistan Fully support, recent peace initiatives in Afghanistan “The conditional ceasefire will start tomorrow and it will continue as long as the Taliban preserves and respects it,” Ghani said on Sunday, August 19, Reuters reported. Ghani said the ceasefire, which begins on the Eid al-Adha holiday, would continue until the Prophet Mohammed’s birthday which Afghanistan celebrates on November 21, AFP reported. Ghani said his administration removed “all obstacles” to peace with the announcement following consultations with religious scholars, political parties and...

Kabul-Afghanistan announced Thursday a week-long ceasefire with the Taliban for Eid though operations against other groups including Daesh will continue. The ceasefire will last "from the 27th of Ramazan until the fifth day of Eid-ul-Fitr," President Ashraf Ghani tweeted from an official account, indicating it could run from June 12-19. It was not immediately clear if the Taliban had agreed to the ceasefire, which would be the first for Eid since the US invasion in 2001. "We are checking with our officials regarding the ceasefire announcement," Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP. The surprise move comes days after a gathering of Afghanistan's top clerics in the capital Kabul called for a ceasefire and issued a fatwa against suicide bombings and attacks. An hour after the fatwa was issued, a suicide bomber detonated outside the gathering, killing seven people. Ghani said his government supported the clerics' call. "The ...

The Taliban radical movement has rejected the offer of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to participate in Afghanistan’s parliamentary and local elections, TOLO broadcaster reported. Monitor Desk  -  Islamabad The Taliban* slammed the upcoming elections, saying that only those who are approved by the United States could gain power in the country, while also claiming that people have been "cheated" at the previous vote, according to the TOLO broadcaster. The radical group also urged the Afghan nation to boycott the elections and noted that the country is "occupied" by foreign forces. Afghani President Ashraf Ghani unveiled his plans to launch peace talks with the  Taliban , starting with a truce and possibly ending with the movement's recognition as a party and their participation in elections in February. In return, the Taliban would have to recognize the current  Afghan governmen...