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U.S., Taliban Make ‘Meaningful’ Progress in Fifth Round of Talks in Doha

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(Last Updated On: October 24, 2022)

Deputy Spokesperson for the U.S. State Department Robert Palladino has said the U.S. and Taliban representatives have had ‘meaningful” progress in the fifth round of peace talks in Qatar which ended on Tuesday.

“These have been the most substantive talks with the Taliban to date,” Palladino told reporters on Tuesday.

He stressed that the Taliban have agreed that peace will require both sides to fully address four “core” issues including counterterrorism assurances, troop withdrawal, intra-Afghan dialogue, and a comprehensive cease-fire.

 “When that agreement, in draft, is finalized, the Taliban and an inclusive Afghan negotiating team that includes the Afghan Government and other Afghans will begin intra-Afghan negotiations of a political settlement and comprehensive ceasefire,” Palladino said.

It comes as the U.S. Special Envoy for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad said that he was returning for consultations with partners after wrapping up the U.S. longest round of consecutive peace talks with Taliban in Doha.

He said they have “agreed in draft” on the issues of counter-terrorism assurances and troop pullout from Afghanistan.

“My next step is discussions in Washington and consultations with other partners. We will meet again soon, and there is no final agreement until everything is agreed,” Khalilzad tweeted.

Meanwhile, the Taliban in a statement on Tuesday also confirmed that the sides agreed in a draft regarding the two issues.

“Both sides will deliberate over the achieved progress, share it with their respective leaderships and prepare for the upcoming meeting, the date of which shall be set by both negotiation teams,” the statement said.

Around 14,000 U.S. troops are based in Afghanistan as part of a U.S.-led NATO mission to train, assist and advise Afghan forces, while many Afghans are concerned of abrupt U.S. pullout from the war-torn country, following the peace talks.

By: Ahmad Zubair Habibzada

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IEA urges World Bank to resume work on 7,000 incomplete projects

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

Officials at the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) say 7,000 incomplete projects of the World Bank are at risk of destruction in Afghanistan. They call on the World Bank to resume the work of these projects.

According to them, discussions have been held with the World Bank about these projects, but there has been no result yet.

“7,000 incomplete projects are being destroyed, and if the work is not started, these projects will be destroyed. We ask the World Bank to resume the work of these projects as soon as possible,” said Noorul Hadi Adel, the spokesperson of MRRD.

Meanwhile, members of the private sector also ask international institutions to resume their work in Afghanistan.

According to the officials of this sector, with the start of these projects, job opportunities will be provided for thousands of people in the country.

“These projects create employment for our people and the country will grow a lot,” said Mirwais Hajizadeh, a member of the private sector.

However, economic experts stated if the work of these projects does not start soon, they will be destroyed and the investments made in them will be wasted.

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Ten people killed by floods in Helmand

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

Ten people have been killed and six others injured by floods in Helmand province in the past week, local officials said on Friday.

According to officials, seven of those were members of the same family, and they were killed in Kajaki district last night.

“Most of the people moved from vulnerable areas to high lands and mountains, and thanks Allah the number of casualties is low,” Sher Mohammad Vahdat, the head of information of the Directorate of Information and Culture in Helmand, said adding rescue teams and security forces have been dispatched to help people.

It is said that the telecommunication system has also been disrupted due to the effect of floods in Kajaki district. Floods have also destroyed thousands of acres of agricultural land.

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UN envoy meets Indian foreign minister to discuss Afghanistan

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, met with the Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi and discussed issues related to Afghanistan, it was announced on Thursday.

During the meeting, Otunbayeva thanked India for “its critical humanitarian support and longstanding friendship for the Afghan people” and discussed the importance of regional and international cooperation to address prevailing challenges in Afghanistan, UNAMA said on X.

Jaishankar also said on X that the sides exchanged views on the current situation in Afghanistan.

“Underlined that India has provided wheat, medicines, pesticides and school supplies. Appreciate the role of UN agencies as partners in these endeavors,” he said.

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