The fourth truce in the two-decade conflict
Renewed fighting in southern Afghanistan with the expiration of the ceasefire
The bombing of the mosque in Kabul killed 12 people.
Father
The renewed fighting between the Taliban and Afghan government forces yesterday in the volatile southern Helmand province, according to officials, with the end of a three-day ceasefire agreed by the two parties on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr.
Clashes took place between the two sides on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand Province, which has witnessed violent battles since May 1, after the US military began its last steps towards a complete withdrawal from Afghanistan, according to an Afghan military spokesman and a local official.
The head of Helmand's provincial council, Ataullah Afghan, said the fighting began early Sunday morning and is still continuing.
He pointed out that the Taliban had attacked security checkpoints on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah and other areas.
A spokesman for the Afghan army in the south of the country confirmed the renewed fighting.
In turn, the spokesman for the "Taliban" movement, Zabihullah Mujahid, told AFP: "They (the Afghan forces) have started the operation ... Do not hold us responsible."
The truce, which the Taliban initiated and called for, and the Afghan government rushed to approve it, during the Eid al-Fitr holiday, which ended the night before last.
On Friday, however, an explosion targeted a mosque on the outskirts of Kabul, killing 12 people, including an imam.
The Taliban denied any connection with the attack claimed by the "ISIS" organization, according to the American website, SITE, which specializes in monitoring the sites of extremist groups.
The truce was the fourth ceasefire agreement to be reached in the two decades of conflict.
Prior to the ceasefire, fighting intensified in several Afghan provinces, including Helmand and Kandahar, former rebel strongholds.
Troubled negotiations
The violence comes in the wake of the announcement by negotiators from both sides of the Afghan government and the "Taliban" that they met in Doha, on Friday, to discuss the acceleration of the peace talks, which began last September, but did not achieve any significant progress.
"The two sides agreed to continue the talks after (Eid Al-Fitr)," the Taliban said on Twitter.
With the escalation of violence, which included a wave of assassinations targeting the intelligentsia in Afghanistan, international efforts made efforts to advance the talks, including the holding of a one-day conference in Moscow in March.
Turkey was scheduled to host a conference on Afghanistan at the end of April, but it was postponed to an unspecified date, given the refusal of the "Taliban" to attend due to the delay in Washington's withdrawal.
The United States pledged to end the longest war in its history, but it exceeded the deadline of May 1 to withdraw all its soldiers, which is stipulated in an agreement signed by Washington with the "Taliban" in exchange for security guarantees, and a pledge to enter into talks with the Afghan government.
The US President, Joe Biden, postponed the date for the withdrawal of his country's soldiers until September 11, that is, 20 years after the United States invaded Afghanistan and overthrew the "Taliban" regime.
On Friday, American and Afghan officials said that Washington had withdrawn completely from a major southern air base in Kandahar, a week after the United States carried out air strikes in the region.
• With the escalation of violence, which included a wave of assassinations targeting the educated class in Afghanistan, international efforts made efforts to push the talks forward, including holding a one-day conference in Moscow in March.
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