Taliban accuses US of violating Afghan deal
FILE PHOTO: US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad (left) and Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar
The Taliban on Friday accused the US of bombarding civilians, rejecting Washington's accusations that it had not lived up to its promises in Afghanistan.
The US signed a landmark deal with the insurgents last year, agreeing to withdraw all of its troops from the country in return for security guarantees after a stalemate on the battlefield.
"They are bombarding civilians, houses and villages, and we have informed them from time to time, these are not just violations of the agreement but violations of human rights," Mohammad Naeem, a Taliban spokesman in Qatar, told AFP.
The US military has in recent months carried out air strikes against the Taliban fighters in defence of Afghan forces in some provinces.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid added on Twitter that the allegations against the group were "unfounded" and that it was "fully committed" to the agreement.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Thursday that the Biden administration remains committed to the Taliban-US deal and ending the war "in a responsible way". He, however, added "the Taliban are not meeting their commitments to reduce violence, and to renounce their ties to Al-Qaeda".
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The agreement, signed in Doha last year, required the Taliban to halt attacks on US forces, sharply decrease the level of violence in the country, and advance peace talks with the government in Kabul.
In return, the United States would steadily reduce its troop levels in the country, and remove all forces by May 2021.
Kirby said the US Defence Department is comfortable withthe current level of 2,500 US troops in the country, down from close to 13,000 a year ago.
It is enough to carry out the main US mission, to counter Islamic State and Al-Qaeda forces operating in Afghanistan. He would, however, not say if the Pentagon will complete a full withdrawal before the May deadline.
This, meanwhile, depends on whether the Taliban and the Afghan government, who launched peace talks in September, can negotiate a settlement.
(with inputs from AFP)