Hosting al-Qaeda leader in Kabul violates Doha Agreement – US
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The US Department of State, in a statement on its website on Tuesday, said that Taliban terribly violated Doha Agreement by sheltering al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri who was killed in a US drone attack in Afghanistan on Monday.
Afghan government described the US attack is a violation of international principles.
On late Monday, the US President Joe Biden, in a speech from the White House, declared the killing of al-Zawahiri in “a precision strike” in Afghanistan.
The attack is the biggest counterterrorism operation against the extremist group since group since its founder Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011.
The Doha Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan, commonly known as the US–Taliban deal was a peace agreement signed by the US and the Taliban in 2020 in Doha, Qatar, to bring an end to the 2001/2021 war in Afghanistan.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “In the face of the Taliban’s unwillingness or inability to abide by their commitments, we will continue to support the Afghan people with robust humanitarian assistance and to advocate for the protection of their human rights, especially of women and girls.”
“By hosting and sheltering the leader of al Qa’ida in Kabul, the Taliban grossly violated the Doha Agreement,” the statement added.
In response, the Afghan government claimed that the US drone strike was a violation of the country’s sovereignty and the Doha Agreement.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed that a strike had taken place, calling it a violation of “international principles.”
“On August 1, an airstrike was carried out on a residential house in the Shirpur area in Kabul city,” Mujahid stated.
He added that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns this attack that was carried out by American drones.
Al-Zawahiri was deeply involved in the planning of 9/11, one of the most responsible for the attacks that murdered 2.977 people on American soil. For decades, he was the mastermind of attacks against Americans,” Biden added.
Al-Zawahiri was sheltering in downtown Kabul to reunite with his family, Biden said.
He indicated that the “precision strike” targeting was the result of the “extraordinary persistence and skill of the nation’s intelligence community.”
The strike comes one year after Biden ordered the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, prompting Taliban forces to rapidly seize control of the nation.