A spokesman for the Afghan Taliban announced that the movement will cease fire three days from Sunday on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, which was welcomed by the president of the country, announcing that the government will reciprocate.
"Do not carry out any offensive operations against the enemy anywhere, if the enemy takes any action against you, defend yourself," said the movement's spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, on Twitter, addressing Taliban fighters.
He explained that the movement announced a cease-fire for Eid Al-Fitr only.
For his part, President Ashraf Ghani welcomed the Taliban announcement, and wrote on Twitter, "As a general commander, I have issued orders to the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces to abide by the three-day ceasefire, and to defend only if attacked."
On the other hand, Zalmay Khalilzad, the US envoy to Afghanistan, welcomed the Taliban's initiative and the government's acceptance of it.
The movement's announcement came after the fighting between the warring parties in the country intensified recently despite the outbreak of the Corona epidemic.
The Taliban had rejected a call by President Ghani at the end of last April for a cease-fire to mark the month of Ramadan, as it saw it at the time "irrational and unconvincing."
But Afghanistan lived before that period of calm between the conflicting parties as a result of the signing of an agreement to bring peace in the country between the Taliban and the United States in the Qatari capital, Doha, at the end of February.
The historic agreement provides for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan within 14 months in exchange for security guarantees by the Taliban and their participation in peace talks with the government.