28 December 2020 - Kabul Explosions Kill One, Wound More Than A Dozen

Afghan police say two explosions in the capital Kabul have killed at least one person and wounded more than a dozen others. One blast targeted employees of the National Statistics Authority who were in a minibus in the Guzargah neighborhood. Kabul police spokesman Ferdaws Faramarz said the explosion on December 28 killed one person and wounded at least 13 others.
He said the bomb had been planted on a bicycle. Earlier, a magnetic "sticky" bomb attached to a police vehicle went off in the Kolola Pushta area of the city, Faramarz said, but caused no casualties. He said investigations had been launched into both attacks. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for either attack. Kabul has been hit by a spate of bomb blasts and targeted killings in recent months. The attacks come as peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in the Qatari capital, Doha, have been suspended until early next month.

30 December 2020 - Afghan troops, police abandon nearly 200 checkpoints to Taliban

Afghan security personnel have abandoned nearly 200 checkpoints in restive Kandahar Province in recent weeks, officials said on December 30, in some cases leaving behind their weapons to be seized by the Taliban. Kandahar provincial governor Hayatullah Hayat and a local lawmaker separately confirmed the situation, saying commanders would be disciplined for their actions.

The Defense Ministry in Kabul denied the reports, insisting government forces had been making progress in the region.

Government forces and the Taliban have clashed regularly in Kandahar Province since October despite peace talks between the warring sides.

"Afghan security forces have retreated from 193 checkpoints and outposts in Zharai, Maiwand, Arghandab, and Panjwai districts," Hayat said. "Most of the security chiefs and officers who neglected their duties have been dismissed and referred to the judiciary." Kandahar lawmaker Hashim Alkhozai and a local police officer confirmed the details.

31 December 2020 - Employee of Afghan President's Office ‘critically wounded,’ driver killed in bomb blast.

An Afghan official says an explosion has struck a car carrying an employee from the Afghan president’s office in Kabul, critically wounding the official and killing his driver. Police said on December 31 that a magnetic bomb was attached to the car carrying Jawid Wali, deputy director of the advisory affairs department.

Wali was "critically wounded" and his driver died, according to the head of the administrative office of the president, Fazel Fazly. Kabul police spokesman Ferdaws Faramarz initially said three people had been wounded in the blast. No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes as targeted killings of government employees, journalists, clerics, politicians, and rights activists have become more common in recent months.

04 January 2021 - Intra-Afghan peace talks to resume in Qatar amid continued violence

Afghan government representatives are set to depart for Doha on January 4 ahead of a new round of peace negotiations with the Taliban following a 20-day hiatus. The sides are scheduled to resume their power-sharing talks in the Qatari capital on January 5, amid rising violence and chaos across Afghanistan that have threatened efforts to put an end to nearly two decades of war.

The direct intra-Afghan talks began in September some seven months after the Taliban reached an agreement with the United States.

Last month, the Afghan government and the Taliban agreed on rules and procedures for negotiations, advancing the talks beyond basic procedural questions to more substantive issues, including reaching an elusive cease-fire. Najia Anwari, a spokeswoman for the Peace Affairs Ministry, said the negotiations were “a complicated process” but that “the Afghan government and the negotiating team, with regard to the interest of the people of Afghanistan, are determined to take the process forward.”

A spokesman for the Taliban's political office in Qatar told that they are fully prepared to participate in the new round of talks. The international community has urged both sides to reduce hostilities and move quickly toward a negotiated settlement amid ongoing violence and clashes across much of Afghanistan.

Analysis

Solution of Afghanistan is in dialogue and Taliban will be the new rulers of Afghanistan after the evacuation of US & its allies. Afghanistan is located at that location where not only Pakistan but also China and other states have large stakes and no one would let anyone settle it for one country or power. World power saw the future and didn’t let Russia to settle and now similarly other powers will use every tactic to stop US in Afghanistan. Taliban after a long fight of 2 decades have upper hand in negotiations. The pause in US Taliban dialogue was to pressurize Taliban but their military response sent message that still they can fight for long. Peace in Afghanistan is important so that war may continue over trade and progress in Afghanistan linking to other countries.