The United States killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a CIA drone strike in Kabul on Sunday. As soon as the news came out, speculations started arising on Pakistan’s role in United State’s access to Afghanistan. Several Indian media outlets alleged that Pakistan might have played a role in taking out the al-Qaeda chief by providing it’s airspace to US.
Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in a US strike in Afghanistan over the weekend, American President Joe Biden said on Monday. Zawahiri, an Egyptian surgeon who had a $25 million bounty on his head, helped coordinate the Sept 11, 2001, attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. “Now justice has been delivered”, Biden said in remarks from the White House.
A Da’ish suicide bomber who killed 64 people at an imambargah Peshawar last week was an Afghan exile who returned home to train for the attack. There have been warnings Afghanistan could become a recruiting ground and staging post for militants since the Taliban returned to power last year following the hasty withdrawal of US-led forces.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world with cases of Polio endemic as Africa was declared free of wild polio on Tuesday. All 47 countries in the WHO’s Africa region have eradicated the crippling viral disease, the last polio case was recorded four years ago in Nigeria. Although thousands of people across Africa still live with the effects of the disease.
The Torkham and Chaman borders connecting Pakistan and Afghanistan are going to be opened for three days to allow Afghan nationals to exit Pakistan. The Foreign Office announced the news in a statement on Saturday. It is being opened at the special request of the Afghan government on humanitarian considerations. The Torkham and Chaman border crossings will be opened for a specific period from April 6 to 9.
Afghan Taliban fighters attacked an outpost in northern Afghanistan killing 10 policemen. The fighting raged across the country despite ongoing talks between Washington and the militant group. The multi-pronged assault took place in Khwaja Alwan district of Baghlan province early Tuesday, said the provincial police spokesman Ahmad Jawed Basharat. He also added that the Taliban also ambushed the police forces sent to reinforce the checkpoint
An Afghan passenger plane crashed on Monday in Ghazni province but the number of people on board and their fate was not immediately known, nor was the cause of the crash. Arif Noori, the spokesperson for the provincial governor, said the plane went down around 1:10pm local time in Deh Yak district, which is held by the Taliban. Two provincial council members also confirmed the crash.
In order to come to a final conclusion to the Afghan war, Pakistan will soon extend a formal invitation to representatives of Afghan Taliban to visit Islamabad. The meeting will hope to convince the insurgents for a permanent ceasefire. The Taliban spokesperson has already indicated that the group’s representatives would be willing to travel to Islamabad if given a formal invitation.
A joint statement issued in Washington has revealed that United States, China and Russia have warmly welcomed Pakistan to a four-party consultation process aiming to bring peace to the war-torn region of Afghanistan after 18 years. The statement recognises Pakistan’s role in Afghan peace process and justifies Islamabad’s view that any development in Afghanistan also impacts Pakistan.