Government of Afghanistan

With the Taliban gaining their power back in Afghanistan, the number of Afghans stressing that they are fleeing to Turkey for survival is increasing day by day.

"We do not want to be Taliban soldiers. We ran away for our lives," an Afghan entering Turkey's east from the Iranian border told daily Milliyet on July 26.

That is what two leaders of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda claim for CNN.
The statement came after US President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the assassination of the leader of that organization, Osama bin Laden.

The Afghan government's negotiating team is ready to begin the long-due intra-Afghan peace talks with the Taliban, President Ashraf Ghani announced in his Eid al-Fitr message on May 24. 

Flanked by his top aides outside the presidential palace's mosque, the Afghan president welcomed the Taliban's unexpected three-day truce declared for the Islamic festival.

The Taliban on April 12 said it was set to release 20 prisoners in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, in a potential breakthrough after the insurgents walked out of talks with the government last week.    

The Afghan government announced today that it has released 100 Taliban prisoners from jail, France Press reported. This happens a day after the rebels announced that they were suspending the peace talks with Kabul about exchanging prisoners, according to them.

The Taliban said their peace deal with the United States was nearing a breaking point, accusing Washington of violations that included drone attacks on civilians, while also chastising the Afghan government for delaying the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners promised in the agreement.

Afghanistan will release some Taliban prisoners this week as part of confidence building measure crucial for the success of the peace deal signed between America and the Taliban to end nearly two decades of war, officials said on April 1.

Afghanistan's government late on March 26 announced a 21-member team to negotiate with the Taliban in a tentative sign of progress for the United States-brokered peace deal.

The peace accord signed between the United States and the Taliban is at a critical juncture, according to NATO's former civilian representative in Afghanistan. The deal foresees negotiations to be undertaken between the Taliban and the Afghan government.

American troops have begun leaving Afghanistan for the initial troop withdrawal required in the U.S.-Taliban peace agreement, the U.S. military confirmed on March 9, amid political chaos in Kabul that threatens the deal.