In Afghanistan

Afghan authorities on July 23 imposed a night-time curfew across 31 of the country's 34 provinces to curb surging violence unleashed by a sweeping Taliban offensive in recent months, the interior ministry said.

He handed over the duty during a solemn ceremony in Kabul, which brought the United States one step closer to the final end of the longest war in the history of America.
The handover took place as Taliban forces continued to march and occupy territories throughout Afghanistan.

Sixteen members of an Afghan family have been stranded at Istanbul Airport for three weeks after escaping their country amid ongoing negotiations on the specific mechanisms of achieving lasting peace between the Afghan government and Taliban after U.S. troops permanently pull out by September.

The Taliban claimed on July 9 to be in control of 85 percent of Afghanistan after seizing key border crossings with Iran and Turkmenistan, part of a sweeping offensive launched as US troops pull out of the war-torn nation.

More than 200 people have been killed so far

Afghanistan's Taliban on May 10 announced a three-day cease-fire for the Eid-al-Fitr holiday this week marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The cease-fire would begin on either May 12 or May 13. The Muslim calendar follows lunar cycles and the Eid holiday depends on the sighting of the new moon.

Austin called for further work on the development of technology and better global military connections in order to "make decisions faster and act faster".
"Our struggle in the next great war will be very different from the previous ones," Austin said at the U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii.

At least 30 people were killed and nearly 100 wounded on April 30 when a car bomb exploded in an Afghan city south of the capital that President Ashraf Ghani blamed on the Taliban.

Turkey announced on April 13 that a keenly awaited international conference on the Afghan peace process will be held in Istanbul from April 24 to May 4.

The high-level and inclusive conference between representatives of the Afghan government and the Taliban is being co-convened by Turkey, Qatar, and the U.N., according to a joint statement issued by the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

The prospects for promoting peace in Afghanistan were also discussed