U.S. LAUNCHES STRIKE AGAINST TALIBAN

U.S. LAUNCHES STRIKE AGAINST TALIBAN 

U.S. launched  its first air strikes against the Taliban since a rare ceasefire between the insurgents and afghan forces ended

Afghan peace process: It comprises the proposals and negotiations in a bid to end the ongoing war in Afghanistan. 

Most of the talks have taken place in Doha, the capital of Qatar

 

Besides the United States, regional powers such as Pakistan, China and Russia, as well as NATO play a part in facilitating the peace process 

Karzai offered peace talks with the Taliban in September 2007, but this was swiftly rejected by the insurgent group citing the presence of foreign troops 

On February 29, 2020, the United States and the Taliban signed a peace agreement in Doha, Qatar

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On March 10, the United Nations Security Council unanimously backed the U.S.-Taliban peace deal.

On March 14, 2020 the U.S.-Taliban peace deal became endangered when Ghani delayed the release of Taliban prisoners

On April 7, 2020 The Taliban officially withdrew from prisoner swap talks

On May 13, 2020, following a spike in violence, President Ghani ordered the Afghan military to resume offensive against the Taliban. 

Continued violence on both sides remains an obstacle to a final peace agreement. 

Pakistan warned that rising tensions in the Gulf region after the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani could affect the already-delayed US-Afghanistan peace process

Taliban, refers to itself as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Sunni Islamic organization that operates in Afghanistan, a country in Central/South Asia.

The Taliban emerged in 1994,  aftermath of the Afghan Civil War

The group was mainly composed of religious students in Pakistani madrassas (who had fought in the Soviet–Afghan War) under the leadership of Mohammed Omar.