Afghanistan

The report by the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) issued on Thursday said that Washington has made training and equipping the Afghan forces a "priority of its reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan".

"A group of Taliban insurgents had gathered in Qarsi area of Qarabagh district to storm security checkpoints but the security forces' planes attacked the gathering in the wee hours of Friday, killing 30 on the spot," provincial government spokesman Wahidullah Jumazada said,

The reports on Thursday said that Milley had a two-and-a-half-hour meeting with Taliban negotiators in Doha on Tuesday as part of efforts to broker a negotiated peace settlement between the Afghan government and the militant group, Xinhua news agency reported. The Pentagon's top military officer then flew to Kabul on Wednesday to discuss the peace process with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

Khan made the appeal during call with Ghani on Wednesday, during which the two leaders discussed the progress in the ongoing Afghan peace process and strengthening of Islamabad-Kabul bilateral relations, Xinhua news agency quoted the Prime Minister's Office as saying in a statement.

Khalilzad's remarks on Monday night came after the two sides confirmed to have exchanged their lists about the agenda of the peace talks, which were formally launched on September 12 in the Qatari capital, and that the next phase of the discussions will begin on January 5, 2021, reports TOLO News.

Saturday's announceme came after the two negotiating teams earlier this month agreed on procedural rules for the talks, which were formally launched on September 12 in the Qatari capital.