Dozens were killed and injured in an explosion in Kabul .. An agreement in Doha to start work to remove the names of Taliban leaders from the blacklists

A spokesman for the Taliban’s political office, Muhammad Naim, said that a five-way meeting was held between the movement’s political bureau and the envoys of Russia, Turkey, China and the United States in the Qatari capital (Doha).

Naeem added in a tweet on Twitter that those gathered agreed to remove the names of Taliban leaders from the blacklist, and to release the rest of the detainees in Afghan government prisons. Read also Taliban welcomes the start of the withdrawal of international forces from Afghanistan Foreign Policy: This is what the Biden administration can do to prevent chaos in Afghanistan even after its withdrawal A withdrawal with a taste of defeat … a battle in Washington over the decision to withdraw from AfghanistanLe Monde: After 20 years of intervention, America has turned Afghanistan into a narco-state

The movement’s deputy for political affairs, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, and his accompanying delegation met yesterday, Thursday, the US envoy to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, where the two sides discussed the current situation in Afghanistan and issues related to the peace process.

In the same context, the parties meeting in the Qatari capital, Doha, to discuss peace in Afghanistan, called on the various Afghan parties to make progress towards a comprehensive settlement and a permanent ceasefire.

The aforementioned parties said in a joint statement after their meeting in Doha that they appreciate the long-term support of the State of Qatar to facilitate the Afghan peace process, and support the continuation of the Afghan discussions between the negotiation teams in Doha.

The statement added that the meeting in Doha supports the review of the classification of figures and entities affiliated with the Taliban movement included in the UN sanctions list.

Achievement of goals

For her part, Kathleen Hicks, Deputy US Secretary of Defense, said that Washington had achieved its goals in Afghanistan and reduced the threat of Al Qaeda. She indicated that Washington is ready to protect its citizens and forces, in the event that Kabul falls in the hands of the Taliban.https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.453.0_en.html#goog_1738707196

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And Hicks added during her participation in the Aspen Security Forum that the Pentagon will continue to protect US interests to ensure that Al Qaeda does not use Afghanistan as a haven again.

These meetings coincide with the start of the US and NATO forces withdrawing from Afghanistan.

The deputy spokeswoman for the White House previously said that the withdrawal process continues, explaining that the Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, has ordered the temporary deployment of special forces in order to provide protection for the withdrawal process. Advertising

She added that the US Central Command will evaluate the operation, and will be able to increase the protection force as needed.

Withdrawal start

On the other hand, NATO said that it had begun withdrawing from Afghanistan, adding that this came after President Joe Biden’s decision to return US forces to the United States, and a NATO official said that the

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In an article published on its website, the Taliban welcomed the start of the withdrawal of international forces from Afghanistan, expressing optimism that the withdrawal would “end the conflict” in the country.

The Taliban stated that the presence of international forces was the main reason for the war in the country. However, the article did not address the current peace process.

Field escalation

On the ground, a security source confirmed to Al-Jazeera on Friday that thirty civilians were killed, and fifty others were wounded in a car bomb explosion targeting the home of the former president of the Luger State Council, south of the capital, Kabul.

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And senior Afghan officials told Reuters that about 120 members of the Afghan security forces, 65 civilians and more than 300 Taliban fighters were killed, and dozens of others were injured in the violence in the country over the past 15 days.

They added that the Taliban are displaying their strength and seeking field gains with the withdrawal of foreign forces, as they describe.

Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Aryan said that the Taliban carried out at least 6 suicide attacks and many killings targeting specific people, and planted 65 bombs on the roadside to target government forces, killing more than 60 civilians and wounding 180 others.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid rejected the government’s accusations that the movement had caused civilian casualties, and said that these victims were killed in aerial bombardment and ground attacks carried out by Afghan forces.