Extend ceasefire, US State Department calls on Taliban

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Biden administration has hailed the Taliban’s announcement of a three-day Eid ceasefire.

State Department spokesman Ned Price, commenting on the announcement on Monday, called on the militant outfit to extend the ceasefire.

Reuters quoted him as saying “We call on the Taliban and Afghan leaders to engage seriously in the ongoing peace process to ensure the Afghan people enjoy a future free of terrorism and of senseless violence.”

Price denounced Saturday’s devastating bombing of a girls’ school in the Dasht-i-Barchi neighbourhood of Kabul, killing dozens of students.

Price believed the Islamic State terrorist group might be involved in the bombing of the school in the Hazara-inhabited area of the capital.

“The circumstances of the bombing — are not yet crystal clear. There are some indications this may have been attributable to ISIS,” the official said.

Price told a news conference the bombing was similar to other Islamic State attacks against Shia targets in Kabul.

PAN Monitor/mud

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