Afghan forces clash with Taliban in Kandhar region ahead of Day 2 peace talks in Qatar

Amid ongoing Afghan peace, fresh clashes between the Afghan national forces and the Taliban are being reported from the country’s southern province of Kandhar. As per reports, the clashes left six insurgents dead while three others have been injured on Sunday, September 13.

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Taliban forces attack checkpoint

According to a spokesperson for the 205th Atal Corps, Khwaja Yahya Alawi, security checkpoints in the Maiwand district of Kandahar province were attacked by Taliban forces on Sunday. The attack on the checkpoints was repelled by the Afghan air force which used airstrikes to counter Taliban fighters and destroy their equipment.

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Afghan Peace Talks

The renewed infight could once again stall the long due peace dialogue between the warring sides, dashing hope of Aghan peace after four decades of conflict. The Afghan government and Taliban officials began peace talks in Qatar on September 12, following a deal between the Taliban and Washington back in February.

The deal stated that the US will reduce its troops Afghanistan while the government and Taliban exchanged a pre-determined number of prisoners. The long-anticipated peace talks finally began after the Afghan government released the final batch of Taliban prisoners last month. 

The intra-Afghanistan Peace talks are being considered a diplomatic breakthrough that could potentially stabilise the war-torn country after nearly four decades of conflict. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in a statement, said the peace talks were a historic opportunity to end the conflict in the country as the people of Afghanistan have ‘carried the burden of war for too long’.

(With ANI Inputs)

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