The partial truce will continue. The day after the signing of a historic agreement between Washington and the Taliban, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Sunday (March 1) that he hoped for a "complete cease-fire".

The week of "reduction of violence" saw the number of attacks collapse across the war-torn country. This preceded the signing on Saturday in Doha (Qatar) of the agreement between the United States and the Afghan insurgents, according to which Washington and its allies agree to withdraw all their troops from Afghanistan within 14 months if the Taliban respect the terms of the agreement, including the opening of discussions between the insurgents and Kabul aimed at achieving lasting peace.

"The reduction in violence will continue with the aim of achieving a complete ceasefire," said Ashraf Ghani at a press conference in Kabul, adding that the Taliban had been informed of this decision by General Scott Miller, chief of the American forces in the country.

"We will comment on this later," Zabihullah Mukahid, a spokesman for the insurgents, told AFP.

The drop in the number of Taliban attacks across the country, linked to the partial truce, has given hope to many Afghans, provoking scenes of spontaneous celebration in the streets where people were dancing for joy.

A clause rejected by the Afghan president

However, there is still a long way to go before the signing of a real peace agreement. Afghanistan has been ravaged by conflict for over 40 years. The United States has been present there militarily since the end of 2001. They had invaded the country following the September 11 attacks on American soil.

Ashraf Ghani thus rejected a clause in the agreement - of which his administration is not a signatory - which calls on the insurgents to release up to 1,000 prisoners and the Afghan government to release 5,000. "There is no no commitment to release 5,000 prisoners, "he said.

"It is the right and the wish of the people of Afghanistan. It is part of the agenda for intra-Afghan discussions, but cannot be a prerequisite for discussions," he added, referring to to intra-Afghan negotiations. Any release of prisoners "is not the responsibility of the United States, it is the responsibility of the Afghan government," he said.

Political crisis

According to the Doha agreement, negotiations between his government and the Taliban are scheduled to start on March 10.

They would see the insurgents negotiating the future of the country against a delegation that the American envoy Zalmay Khalilzad described as "inclusive" and comprising "important figures of the government, key officials of political parties, members of civil society, and women. "

The opening of these intra-Afghan talks is a prerequisite for the withdrawal of American troops, according to the terms of the agreement.

The Taliban have so far refused to negotiate with the government of Ashraf Ghani, whom they describe as a puppet of Washington.

The latter must now set up the Afghan delegation for dialogue, while he is entangled in a political crisis following accusations of electoral fraud concerning his disputed re-election, notably by his main rival Abdullah Abdullah who wants to set up his own parallel administration.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the Doha agreement, the people of Kabul did not hide their relief from being able to walk the streets without fear of attacks by the Taliban, generally deadly and mainly affecting civilians.

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