Representatives of the Afghanistan government and Taliban militia are set to hold talks in the Maldives on national reconciliation, their second such meeting this year. "The government of Maldives confirms that talks are being held this week in the Maldives between Afghan lawmakers and representatives from groups opposed to the Afghan government," President Mohammaed Nasheed's press secretary Mohamed Zuhair said. The Maldivian government has no involvement in the talks.
'India has to ensure its borders are properly sealed and there is no infiltration from PoK.
Here are some of the glimpses of the celebrations.
An intense 25-hour gun-battle between security forces and terrorists outside the Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif came to end on Monday night with the killing of all the attackers who attempted to storm the Mission building.
It was a dream come true for Afghan players Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan to be part of the Indian Premier League and both want to make a mark during their stint with the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
'It was a wonderful all-round effort by Afghanistan'
For Afghans in India, including medical tourists from the war-torn country as well as migrants and refugees staying here much longer, the safety of friends and families is the biggest concern - particularly for those linked to the now collapsed government or who have had work ties with the US.
There's no rush to recognition from the United States or any country we have spoken with around the world. It will be very dependent on their behaviour and whether they deliver on what the expectations are of the global community, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
'Throughout the nearly 20-year US-led war, State sponsorship from Pakistan has been a constant.'
The decision was taken after officials from the BCCI and the Afghanistan Cricket Board met in New Delhi on Tuesday.
According to a Union home ministry notification, those Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians residing in the districts of Anand and Mehsana in Gujarat will be allowed registration as a citizen of India under Section 5 or will be granted certificate of naturalisation under section 6 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and in accordance with the provisions of the Citizenship Rules, 2009.
'We have been already successful in Australia at Big Bash. That's why they pick us. The main thing is to adjust to the conditions. Here most of the times, the condition is such that the ball is turning. In Australia, it is totally different, there is bounce and not that much turn, so you have to stick to your line and look for dot balls'
Afghanistan officials are trying to shield their athletes from trouble brewing back home as the war-ravaged country chases its first Asian Games gold in Indonesia.
The Afghan tradition of gaining control of areas does not necessarily involve combat. Most engagements are settled through negotiations and pay-offs before battle is joined. This style of fighting is peculiar to Afghanistan, explains Ajai Shukla, who witnessed such a transaction between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance in November 2001.
Six Indian nationals were among 18 people killed in a Taliban attack on an Indian construction company in Afghanistan, a Pakistani TV news channel reported.
Robust military preparedness along the entire perimeter of our nation is the only iron-clad permanent guarantee for our security, asserts Vivek Gumaste.
The Pentagon has praised India's significant contribution in the peaceful development of Afghanistan, aimed at securing a stable region and facilitating economic corridors into Central Asia.
The IS terror plot was foiled following the arrest of an Afghan suicide bomber, who had been under the surveillance of security agencies for long, in late 2017.
The Taliban said the attacker had posed as a peace messenger, the BBC reports.
Representatives from the United States and Qatar, the UN, China, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, the EU, Germany, India, Norway, Tajikistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan joined a regional conclave on Thursday to discuss ways to contain the escalating security situation in Afghanistan.
Downplaying the Afghan Taliban's recent praise of India in not kowtowing to the West, the US State Department has said the Obama administration is pleased with the support that New Delhi is giving to strengthen the security, stability, prosperity of Afghanistan.
'It will remain hostile to Indian interests owing to its close proximity to China.'
An Islamabad court on Friday granted bail to Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind of 2008 Mumbai terror attack, in a six-year kidnapping case.
Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani has called the leak of classified United States military documents on the Afghan war as 'irresponsible', and insisted that his nation was fully committed to fighting terror groups.Whistle-blower organisation WikiLeaks has released over 90,000 documents called the 'Afghan War Diaries, 2004-2010', which prove fears that Pakistan is aiding the Taliban to organise networks of militant groups that fight against America.
United States Vice President Joe Biden on Monday made an unannounced trip to Afghanistan to have an on ground assessment of the situation in the war-torn country, less than six months before the scheduled start of drawdown of American troops.
United States President Barack Obama has identified India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and 17 other countries as major drug transit or a major illicit drug- producing nations of the world.
Nearly 60 per cent of Afghans want foreign troops to leave their country now or start leaving by next summer, the date originally promised by US President Barack Obama for the beginning of a pullout, according to a media poll.
Top diplomats from Afghanistan and Pakistan engaged in verbal sparring during a discussion on cross-border terrorism and presence of terrorist safe havens, at the United Nations Security Council.
Among other things, presidents Pervez Musharraf and Hamid Karzai also discussed the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- Pakistan gas pipeline project.
The billions India invested in dams, schools, etc in Afghanistan will be gone. The Hindu and Sikh population of Afghanistan has already shrunk from some 200,000 to about 500, points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
The new Afghan National Army would have balanced representations of all sects like Pushtuns, Tajiks, Uzbek, Hazara as well as smaller minorities like Ismailis.
On Sunday, after 13 years of war, over 500 deaths and over 20 billion, United Kingdom withdrew from Afghanistan. In a touching ceremony, the Union Jack flag was lowered at Camp Bastion, which has been the center of UK operations in Afghanistan since 2006. British Prime Minister David Cameron vowed that Britain will 'never forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice' and Labour leader Ed Miliband said the handover was a "time to remember those who have served Britain so courageously in Afghanistan over the last decade".
Accusing Pakistan of harbouring Taliban and Al Qaeda militants, a top Afghan official on Monday said the global community is committing a blunder by embracing it as a strategic partner despite the fact that terrorism emanating from the region is affecting India, United Kingdom and others. "Unfortunately, the military-intelligence establishment of one of our neighbours still regards Afghanistan as its sphere of influence," Rangin Dadfar Spanta said.
Confederation of India Industry on Saturday welcomed the signing of Preferential Trade Agreement between India and Afghanistan and said this would facilitate easy flow of goods between the two countries.
The sources said India may be building small libraries as part of the community development initiative, but most of its investments in Afghanistan were on mega infrastructure projects including the 218 km road from Zaranj to Delaram, the Salma Dam and the new Afghan Parliament building.
Pakistan-India bilateral relations remained frozen for the fourth year over the vexed Kashmir issue but analysts hope the strained ties could be repaired if Nawaz Sharif becomes the prime minister for a record fourth time in the general elections in February in the absence of his main challenger Imran Khan who is in jail in multiple cases.
The future can only get better if we continue to break silos and work as integrated teams focussed on promoting national interests, recommends Sanjeev Nayyar.
Undeterred by last week's attack, India on Saturday declared that it will continue its developmental activities in Afghanistan without scaling down presence even as it suspended operations of its medical mission in Kabul hit by injuries to most of its members.
'The operation commanders of the Islamic Emirate (as Taliban movement calls itself) are going to meet shortly to finalise a new war strategy under which foreigners working on their national agendas, particularly Indians, will be targeted,' The News quoted Qari Ziaur Rehman, a Taliban commander, as saying.
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