US strikes Taliban forces, in first hit since peace deal

The US performed Wednesday its first airstrike in opposition to Taliban forces in Afghanistan since signing an formidable peace deal with the militant team.

US army spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett mentioned in a tweet that the “defensive” strike used to be the first US assault in opposition to the militants in 11 days. He mentioned the assault used to be to counter a Taliban attack on Afghan executive forces in Nahr-e Saraj in the southern Helmand province.

Leggett added that Taliban forces had performed 43 assaults on Afghan troops on Tuesday in Helmand. In line with a spokesman for the province’s governor, Omer Zwak, no less than two cops had been killed and one different wounded in the Washir district of southern Helmand.

Leggett referred to as at the Taliban to prevent the assaults and uphold their commitments in line with the peace settlement signed on February 29 between their leaders and U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in Doha, Qatar, which lays out a conditions-based trail to the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.

President Donald Trump showed Tuesday that he spoke at the telephone to a Taliban chief, making him the first US President believed to have ever spoken without delay with the militant team liable for the deaths of hundreds of US troops in just about 19 years of preventing in Afghanistan.

The Afghan Internal Ministry says that 4 civilians and 11 troops had been killed on Wednesday in a wave of Taliban assaults around the nation in the previous 24 hours.

In line with ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi, Afghan forces killed no less than 17 Taliban right through those clashes.

The Afghan Protection Ministry previous mentioned that seven squaddies had been killed when Taliban attacked a checkpoint in northern Kunduz province.

Kandahar police spokesman Jamal Naser Barekzai informed The Related Press that a police officer used to be killed and one wounded in a string of Taliban assaults around the province.

The Taliban have no longer claimed accountability for any of those assaults thus far or commented at the US airstrike Wednesday.

Alternatively, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid informed the AP Wednesday that a week of aid in violence that began middle of the night on Feb 21 had ended.

In keeping with the US-Taliban deal, peace negotiations between the warring Afghan aspects are meant to start on March 10. Alternatively, the Afghan executive has already rejected liberating Taliban prisoners forward of launching the talks, a precondition which the militants say used to be a part of the U.S. settlement.

Leggett mentioned that US forces are liable for protecting their Afghan allies consistent with agreements between US and Afghan executive.