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Pompeo pushes for ceasefire during Doha meeting
US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo met with both the Afghanistan Republic and the Taliban’s negotiating teams in Doha, Qatar on Saturday to discuss issues around the peace process and a ceasefire, his office confirmed overnight in a statement.
According to the US State Department’s Principal Deputy Spokesperson Cale Brown, Pompeo “commended both sides for continuing to negotiate and for the progress they have made.
“Secretary Pompeo and the negotiators discussed ways to reduce violence, and he encouraged expedited discussions on a political roadmap and a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire,” Brown said in a statement.
“Secretary Pompeo reiterated that the people of Afghanistan expect and deserve to live in peace and security after 40 years of war and bloodshed,” Brown added.
US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad was also present at the meetings.
The Afghan negotiating team said tweeted late Saturday night that “during the meeting, Sayed Sadat Mansoor Naderi, Minister of State for Peace Affairs and a member of the negotiating team thanked the United States for its continued support to Afghanistan over the years.”
Naderi also called on the US to continue supporting Afghanistan even once a peace agreement has been signed.
“The members of the negotiating team said that the people of Afghanistan want to preserve the achievements of the last two decades in the country. They also said that the escalation of violence after the release of 5,000 Afghan prisoners was unacceptable and in conflict with the Doha Agreement,” the negotiating team tweeted.
The Afghan talks team told Pompeo that the Afghan people want a permanent ceasefire.
“During the meeting, the members of the negotiating team said that the ongoing war in Afghanistan is against Islam and its continuation is unacceptable to the international community,” the Afghan talks team tweeted.
“During the meeting, Mike Pompeo, referring to US support for the peace process, said that lasting peace is a common goal of both countries. The country’s support for lasting peace in Afghanistan will continue, as well as long-term commitments to the Afghan people,” the team stated.
The Taliban’s spokesman in Doha, Naeem Mohammed also issued a series of tweets late Saturday night, after the meetings.
He said: “The political deputy and head of the political office Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and the head of negotiating team Sheikh Mawlawi Abdulhakeem and the delegation accompanying them met with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his team.
“During the meeting, the importance of the agreement signed between the two sides and commitment to it were discussed.
“Likewise, the removal [of Taliban] from Blacklist, the liberation of remaining prisoners and the topics related to Intra-Afghan negotiations were talked about,” Naeem tweeted.
Pompeo met with talks team negotiators after recent indications point towards some headway having been made in talks, which started in September but soon hit a deadlock.
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Tajik foreign minister urges international community to help Afghanistan address its challenges
Tajikistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sirodjiddin Mukhriddin, has called on the international community to step up assistance for Afghanistan as the country continues to face challenges.
Speaking at a press conference, Mukhriddin said Tajikistan and Afghanistan maintain active coordination between their law enforcement agencies to prevent security incidents along their shared border. He noted that this cooperation remains essential, as the frequency of armed attacks and criminal activity in border regions has increased in recent months.
He said that Afghan authorities had assured Tajikistan they would take necessary measures to stop further incidents and would conduct thorough investigations into any violations.
Mukhriddin emphasized that Tajikistan supports constructive international engagement aimed at improving Afghanistan’s socio-economic conditions. He highlighted that Tajikistan has provided more than 6,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, including food and essential supplies delivered in 2025 to assist communities affected by devastating earthquakes.
The minister also pointed to growing economic cooperation between the two neighbors. Tajikistan has reopened border markets and continues to supply electricity to Afghanistan.
Tajikistan and Afghanistan share a border of more than 1,300 kilometers—over 1,100 km of which consists of waterways and about 190 km of land boundaries.
Meanwhile, Zafar Samad Director of the Drug Control Agency under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, has said that last year, 17 incidents of clashes happened with drug smugglers along the border with Afghanistan. As a result, two Tajik forces and 10 Afghan nationals have been killed, he added.
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Baradar: Afghanistan is not an easy target, but a ‘bitter tree’
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, warned during a graduation ceremony for soldiers of the Ministry of National Defense that the Islamic Emirate will respond decisively to anyone with ill intentions toward Afghanistan.
He said the country is “not an easy target, but a bitter tree that has made the throats of empires bitter and newborns can never digest.”
Baradar also announced that in the coming days, the Islamic Emirate will introduce tax exemptions of one to five years for domestic and foreign investors, based on the level of investment in new sectors. He also said that the process of distribution of land to manufacturers will be accelerated.
Baradar called on countries to engage in political and economic relations according to the values and principles of the Islamic Emirate, emphasizing that energy and resources spent on conflict would be better used to support one another and strengthen common interests.
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Fourteen former Afghan government forces killed in last three months of 2025: UNAMA
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), in its latest report on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, stated that 14 members of the former Afghan government forces were killed in the last three months of 2025.
The report noted that during this period, there were 28 cases of arbitrary arrest and detention, and at least seven cases of torture and ill-treatment targeting officials and personnel of the former Afghan government.
According to the report, some of the officials and forces who had recently returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan were among those subjected to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and detentions.
The report also highlighted restrictions on women’s work and movement, executions and flogging of individuals, and disruptions to internet and telecommunications services.
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