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Taliban views US airstrikes as ‘open challenge for Doha agreements’ — report

On Thursday, Pentagon spokesman confirmed that the US Air Force carried out a series of airstrikes in the last few days within the framework of support to the Afghan military against the Taliban

TEHRAN, July 23. /TASS/. The Taliban movement (outlawed in Russia) views the US airstrikes in support of the Afghan Armed Forces as "an open challenge to the Doha agreements," Tolo News reported Friday, citing the Taliban statement. 

"The recent airstrikes by the US military in support of the Afghan Army in Kandahar and Gilmend provinces are an open challenge to the Doha agreements," the statement says. "This step will have serious consequences for the international coalition."

On Thursday, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby confirmed that the US Air Force carried out a series of airstrikes in the last few days within the framework of support to the Afghan military against the Taliban. He refused to provide any details of the strikes.

On Friday, the Ministry of Defense of Afghanistan reported the elimination of 17 Taliban militants in last night’s Afghan Air Force airstrike. Another airstrike eliminated 10 Taliban militants. However, there were no mentions of US airstrikes.

On February 29, 2020, the Trump Administration and the Taliban movement signed a peace agreement in Doha. According to the agreement, the US, its allies and the coalition vowed to withdraw all forces from Afghanistan within 14 months. In turn, the Taliban vowed not to use the territory of Afghanistan for actions that threaten the security of the US and its allies.

On April 14, 2021, US President Joe Biden announced the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, which is supposed to be completed by September 11, 2021. The Taliban considers this decision a violation of the Doha agreement, which stipulated, in particular, that the US forces must have withdrawn by May 1, 2021.