A roadside bomb tore through a passenger bus east of the Afghan capital on Saturday, killing nine civilians, officials said, in the latest attack blamed on the Taliban.

“Ceasefire in Afghanistan is a major issue but we have not reached at a level [in the ongoing peace talks] where we will discuss this issue. So far we have not taken the first step towards the peace negotiations.”

At least 12 civilians were killed and more than 10 others injured on Saturday in twin airstrikes on a Taliban base in the northeastern Afghan province of Kunduz, a provincial official said.

His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani met at the Amiri Diwan Office yesterday with Head of the Afghan Taliban's Political Office Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and the accompanying delegation, on the occasion of their visit to the country to participate in the Afghanistan...

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani on Saturday met the Head of Taliban's Political office in Qatar Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar ...

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar stressed the Taliban's desire to build peace and stability for the future of Afghanistan through negotiations

Following the comprehensive US-Taliban peace agreement signed earlier this year, the Afghanistan peace negotiations commence in Qatar on Saturday, the Government Communications Office (GCO) tweeted on Friday.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday signed a decree to release a final batch of "hardcore" Taliban prisoners demanded by the militants, sources told Reuters.

Afghanistan agreed on Sunday to release 400 "hard-core" Taliban prisoners, paving the way for peace talks aimed at ending almost two decades of war.

The Afghan government and the Taliban are ‘on the verge’ of peace talks, after thousands of prominent Afghans approved the release of about 400 contentious militant prisoners, Kabul's lead negotiator said Sunday.

A ceasefire between the Taliban and Afghan government appeared to hold for the third and final day on Sunday, with hundreds of militant prisoners released in a bid to bring peace talks closer.

Afghanistan's Taliban militants announced on Tuesday that they will observe a three-day ceasefire for the Muslim religious holiday of Eid al-Adha, starting Friday, offering some respite from weeks of increasing violence.