Taliban say will resume operations against Afghan forces

Kabul, March 2

The Taliban said on Monday they were resuming offensive operations against Afghan security forces, ending the partial truce that preceded the signing of a deal between the insurgents and Washington.

The declaration comes only a day after President Ashraf Ghani said he would continue the partial truce at least until talks between Afghan officials and the Taliban kick-off, supposedly on March 10.

It ran for one week ahead of the signing of the historic accord in Doha on Saturday, and continued over the weekend.

“The reduction in violence... has ended now and our operations will continue as normal,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP.

“As per the (US-Taliban) agreement, our mujahideen will not attack foreign forces but our operations will continue against the Kabul administration forces.” Fawad Aman, deputy spokesman for the defence ministry said the government was “checking to see if (the truce) had ended”.

“We have not had any reports of any big attacks in the country yet,” he added.

Since the deal signing on Saturday, the Taliban have been publicly celebrating their “victory” over the US.

Under the terms of the deal, foreign forces will quit Afghanistan within 14 months, subject to Taliban security guarantees and a pledge by the insurgents to hold talks with the Kabul government.

The dramatic fall in attacks due to last week’s partial truce between the Taliban, US and Afghan forces offered Afghans a rare opportunity to go about their daily lives without fear of violence.

Ghani warned the insurgents Monday that he was not committed to a key clause in the Doha deal involving the release of thousands of Taliban prisoners.

Three killed in blast

A bombing at a football match killed three people and injured 11 others on Monday in eastern Afghanistan, a police official told AFP, as the Taliban announced an end to a partial truce in the country.

“A motorcycle rigged with a bomb exploded during a football match,” said Sayed Ahmad Babazai, police chief of eastern Khost province, giving details of the toll.

Abdul Fatah Wakman, president of the Khost Football Federation, told AFP the three people killed were brothers.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.  — Agencies

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