acting defense secretary go to kabul presumably with a message to try to comfort if you like the the government of us afghani and try to get him involved with these talks that have been going on so far between the u.s. and the taliban and and excluding the government i mean if you get a managed to persuade them to get on board. well of fish you know the acting secretary he said that he wants to have your fourteen report for president trump but obviously he's going to be facing a lot of tough questions in kabul and those questions will be about both the peace and about ongoing security concerns and inevitably he's going to be asked about you know is there a timetable for the the withdrawal of the u.s. troops how serious is the u.s. about calling its troops out but he will also be asked about the you know they're all going security commitments so i have concluded that the only way we're going to see peace in afghanistan is if it is possible to secure the existing political system in kabul and i know that president danny and the people there will be asking him how strong is the enduring

defense secretary has just arrived in kabul tony berkeley's our correspondent in the afghan capital and tony while mr shanahan rides to discuss important security interests in the region he's also really got a very strategic relationship with the government in kabul that needs to be briefed on not just security arrangements but ongoing peace talks. yes indeed i mean he's taken over from jim matheson he's got a very tough job on his hands this peace momentum which started with the talks with the taliban and the u.s. in in doha as you know moved on a bit now but we're not really any closer to peace of course he wants to come here and find out for himself in person what the situation is but he did make a very encouraging statement least encouraging for the afghan government he said that talks have to include with the taliban have to include the afghan government and that's a priority for the afghan government they say that can be no peace without them talking directly to the taliban there are lots of concerns at the speed at which these peace negotiations are going and the fact that the af

the key to peace in kabul requires that we have a practical principled and inclusive plan for it but the keys to war are in islamabad role pindi and quiet or. a peace deal could change everything in a understand if possible ceasefire will be followed by a power sharing settlement a new constitution and then elections a process of that might create a new political reality in a country that's been at war for decades. well tribal chiefs and clerics in afghanistan have sought to assure the government that any polio vaccination campaign will not be targeted by the taliban the one month campaign to inoculate children under five started in january five million children in high risk areas need to be vaccinated but as al-jazeera discovered some parents are still suspicious about the vaccine as tony berkeley reports from kabul. this is all it takes just a couple of drops of vaccine and this baby has protection from polio the highly contagious virus attacks the nervous system and can lead to paralysis mainly in children under the age of five. the daughter or vaccination program in the capital k

so there's a there's a there's a long historical debate that talks about the roads to kabul. kashmir meaning that until and unless you don't have the pakistanis in the indians dawned sort of settle discussion issue peace will not be distorting of londonistan that's one factor to it. the reason that the african foreign ministry summoned. the embassador was for his remarks just like you said but the other reason is that the afghan government looks at. the taliban as a proxy off the pakistani government and back and taliban on the other hand if you recall when mohammad been sort of man was dead in pakistan the taliban were supposed to meet and run khan and mohammed bin sunline but they can so did citing that the afghan government that the afghan government sort of rejected their troubles because they are under do you travel bans the taliban proved that they are and dependent and they are not and did the pakistani and the pakistani influence and also the saudi influence and they are a cancer to the. talks that what happened what was supposed to happen two weeks ago let me come wi

eight thousand recruits every year pass out of this training center in the capital kabul most of them are trained by afghan instructors taught by western military experts who despite the high casualty rate young men are still volunteering to fight it's partly out of a sense of pattern duty but it's also because of the dire economic situation here they face the stark choice either stay at home and enjoy your poverty or face the taliban and risk death or injury and that from the e.s.m. it's my duty to fight for my country to win our freedom i'm not afraid of the taliban for the magazine other stuff but if i hadn't gone to the army i had nothing else planned professional soldiers say ideally training should last a minimum of a year in afghanistan it's three months. we would like more time but we make the most of what time we do have and when they leave here they are able to fight the taliban. but the question is how able are they to fight effectively pay is low the conditions poor and since the american ground forces left back up is limited recruits are taught to shoot but equally import

let's bring in all panel now in kabul a list on conflict peace and security is also works as pawns of the peace process and michael semple research on the afghan taliban and full of special representative to afghanistan and also from kabul. the norwegian refugee council in afghanistan of our wall welcome to all of you thanks for being here on inside story. these two. walks in doha the moment they build on this framework for peace that was agreed to at the last talks in doha those are getting a boost from the presence of taliban's co-founder baradar what's likely to come of them. i think this is a good progress that that has joined the ranks of the taliban a spark of the peace process the expectation is that this time we should have concrete progress on the issues that what i agreed in the last meeting in doha and why do i said that in the last meeting they agreed on a broad broad framework off of the american withdrawal from the avalon from of honest on and some issues related to future enjoyments but then we were hearing some news here that there would have differences of opinions ab

year war the acting defense secretary patrick shanahan is making the surprise visit to the capital kabul he's meeting the u.s. military and the afghan president ashraf ghani to discuss national security issues shanahan says it's crucial the government as part of peace talks with the taliban tony berkley is joining us from kabul and tony of course the afghan government has been sidelined from these peace talks because the taliban regards it as illegitimate so what message is shanahan carrying to the governments. i think he's going to reassure the government that they haven't been sidelined they haven't been forgotten he did say that it's very important that afghans at the end of the day who will achieve peace there will have to live with peace so therefore they must take part in this i think the taliban position that they would never do negotiate directly with the afghan government is one that will probably change in the coming months but there are questions about how quickly this whole process is going because shanahan will be assessing the strength on the ground you will be assessing wh

eight thousand recruits every year pass out of this training center in the capital kabul most of them are trained by afghan instructors taught by western military experts who despite the high casualty rate young men are still volunteering to fight this partly out of a sense of past duty but it's also because of the dire economic situation here they face the stark choice either stay at home and enjoy your poverty or face the taliban and risk death or injury and that from the e.s.m. it's my duty to fight for my country to win our freedom i'm not afraid of the taliban for the magazine other stuff i hadn't gone to the army i had nothing else planned professional soldiers say ideally training should last a minimum of a year in afghanistan it's three months that. we would like more time but we make the most of what time we do have and when. leave here they are able to fight the taliban. but the question is how able are they to fight effectively army pay is low the conditions poor and since the american ground forces left backup is limited recruits are taught to shoot but equally importantly

abandon those who loyally served with little thought for the consequences tony berkeley al-jazeera kabul. president assad to expand his ballistic missile program in a speech marking forty years since the islamic revolution addressing tens of thousands of people on the final day of celebrations are some rouhani also dismissed american efforts to isolate them. from the it's an adult world rally held since one nine hundred seventy nine iranians converge on our freedom square in central tehran to celebrate independence from u.s. dominance islamic republic is marking this year's anniversary engaged in the latest standoff with the united states and the message remains the same one of defiance. it was made by the man who had pushed for engagement with the west iranian president hassan rouhani sealed the two thousand and fifty nuclear deal with world powers which the us withdrew from a few months ago and really imposed sanctions mug the united states and israel they impose sanctions on us putting pressure on our nation a massive turnout means the enemy won't attain their goals so we will continu

troops stationed there tony but he has more from kabul. mr shanahan spent monday meeting u.s. and nato military leaders and members of the afghan government including president ashraf ghani it was a two fold mission for sess what is happening on the ground although the peace talks are being going on with the taliban they are still fighting and still carrying out missions and also to reassure the government i think that they have not been sidelined from these peace negotiations will number that the u.s. taliban talks are excluded the afghan government this is something that the taliban have always insisted that they would never talk directly to the afghan government in fact they don't call them a government they call them and administration that is a stumbling block so mr shanahan was at pains to say that the afghan government should be part of the negotiations he also said that the overall peace solution lies in the hands of the afghan people but he also said there were no instructions to withdraw any of the american forces this fourteen thousand on the ground at the moment th

the execution was a clear sign of what kind of regime had seized power in kabul. julie says traveled in secrecy took a bill in one nine hundred ninety seven in order to learn more about the new regime . i had gone into kabul when it was held by the talabani secretly ace they dressed as as an afghan woman in a burka us. they seemed very foreign to me. certainly many conservative muslims but even among them they generally do not support the sort of extremism that the taliban stand for i see the taliban really is an alien force. their attitude toward women or a number of human rights issues i found disturbing but i think it was that larger geopolitical issue of them being back i had pakistanis that was most disturbing to me. not. when the tide went to me and called out did you kill your own go down but you need to have a good experience with. the taleban man said bitterly just today it's. still being learning insanities and their mother says they couldn't did it was not to kill her but to truth that it was a twelve day international community that was the top mark. a

eight thousand recruits every year pass out of this training center in the capital kabul most of them are trained by afghan instructors taught by western military experts who despite the high casualty rate young men are still volunteering to fight partly. out of a sense of packed duty but it's also because of the dire economic situation here they face the stark choice either stay at home and enjoy your poverty or face the taliban and risk death or injury a definite yes and it's my duty to fight for my country when our freedom i'm not afraid of the taliban for the magazine other stuff if i hadn't gone to the army i had nothing else planned professional soldiers say ideally training should last a minimum of a year in afghanistan it's three months. we would like more time but we make the most of what time we do have and when they leave here they are able to fight the taliban. but the question is how able are they to fight effectively army pay is low the conditions poor and since the american ground forces left backup is limited recruits are taught to shoot but equally importantly they ar

let's bring in our panel now in kabul a list on conflict peace and security is also works as part of the peace process and michael semple of the afghan taliban and full of special representative to afghanistan and also from kabul. the norwegian refugee council in afghanistan of our wall welcome to all of you thanks for being here on inside story . these talks in doha at the moment they build on this framework for peace that was agreed to at the last talks and all those are getting a boost from the presence of taliban's co-founder. what's likely to come of the. i think this is a good progress that that has joined the ranks of the taliban a spark of the peace process the expectation is that this time we should have concrete progress on the issues that what i agreed in the last meeting in doha and why do i said that in the last meeting they agreed on a broad broad framework of the american withdrawal from the avalon from of honest on and some issues related to future enjoyments but then we were hearing some news here that there would have differences of opinions about issues between the

acting defense secretary pat shanahan touched down in kabul for talks with president musharraf's ghani. the aim to bring the taliban and the afghan government to get that at the same table. hope is that expectation is that once that afghan dialogue begins which is. key objective that these. parallel the sky shall be brought together. to fight the fire but so far the taliban are refusing to talk to afghan officials directly leaving foreign envoys to act as go betweens. russia this also started weighing in on the peace efforts last week moscow broke at a meeting between the taliban and opposition leaders tribal elders and former president hamid karzai the president usher afghani and his officials would not represent edge. with washington itching to bring its troops home afghans now fear that they could exit before last in peace between the taliban and the kabul government a secured. and that history may repeat itself in afghanistan. that's about all we did with some pictures of the soul rip withdrawal from the promise of thirty years ago today in sri lanka but. it's time for berlin sixty

zalmay khalilzad, the us envoy who's been in kabul in the last few days, has delivered the news that7 years of fighting, peace for the taliban might be in sight. you must be delighted. well, you are right. the demand for peace is in the veins of every afghan, but it is the modality of how we negotiate and also what sort of peace we achieve is controversial. do you agree with president ashraf ghani that the taliban could enter mainstream politics? absolutely. we have never opposed any group to become mainstream politics, regardless of what type of politics they pursue, as long as they don't resort to violence and intimidation. of course they are most welcome to become a mainstream political entity. it must be frustrating, though, for you, as a former directorate of the security agency, a former director—general of the national directorate of security, you were there for six years, i think, to know that last year, just hours before its leading members sat down for another day of talks with the us envoy, the taliban attacked one of the nds bases, killing at least 43 people, and injuring

that the only hate that it will not take too much time perhaps months interesting that the official kabulis not attending today's peace conference here in moscow mr stein exactly has explained that this is because it is not a legal force the taliban movement has always blamed the government in kabul for violence for aggression against afghanistan and for foreign troops on the ground let's take a listen but the first government of a tree in this meeting they were not supposed to come because. britain. and of the other one and also the other one communities who are involved for government because. according to us to the north and they go dormant to do more to . the former president of afghanistan hamid karzai is also among those participating in today's peace conference and i had a chance to talk to him as well and i also came whether it is a big problem actually that the official kabul is not participating and he has told me that again they hope that one day they will all gather together and i guess this may only happen after. the last foreign soldier leaves afghanistan so it's a lot about

the government in kabul for violence for aggression against afghanistan and for foreign troops on theground let's take a listen but the first government has a tree in this meeting they were not supposed to come because we're. going to run by libertarian. movement of the one and also the other one communities who are voting for a government because. according to the north and they go dormant to be demoted although many see today's peace conference here in moscow as well as are the efforts to bring the long awaited peace to afghanistan as a positive tendency not everybody shares this optimism i have been able to speak to the member of the afghan column and head of women rights human rights and civil side to commission there and she has told me that a varsity majority off she believes of the afghan society is not ready to go back to the rule of the taliban because this is a very conservative and at the end of the day why the can traverse force this is what she has told me i think we have to listen to what the people of afghanistan lost because at the end of the day they will do the count

in kabul thank you very much for that update. and i do apologize for the slight glitch we had in the line to kabul the pope francis has ended a three day trip to the united arab emirates by leading a mass attended by more than one hundred eighty thousand people the event filled stadium in the capital abu dhabi during the sermon the pontifex knowledge the plight of migrant workers in the gulf country many a filipino and an indian workers who work there to support families back home earlier francis called for more cooperation between muslims and christians. as the crowds cheer pope francis cavalcade makes its way slowly into the zoe sports stadium in abu dhabi. all around the catholic faithful kitchen mark this historic occasion. most. here for some reason. which appears to. be magic that. this country. might never imagine. it's. this the first ever papal mass in the arabian peninsula and what some consider to be the largest show of public christian worship in the gulf arab region public displays of non islamic faith have restricte

we're flying over kabul here in afghanistan, of course, america's longest war. and they'll tell you here that part of any end game for u.s. forces here is making sure that the afghan forces are prepared to fight the insurgency. and that insurgency now includes isis. you are looking at afghan special forces just weeks ago, with help from the americans, the coalition. they are fighting isis, not in syria, but in afghanistan, supported with u.s. air strikes. and unlike the taliban, isis has no desire to negotiate. this four-star general has no desire to let them go unchecked. general miller making it clear, there is no end game here with safe havens for terrorists. >> in 2001, it was very clear to the world what we were doing in afghanistan. and in 2019, there still are national interests that needed to be safeguarded. >> general miller taling me they will continue the assault on the taliban. they will keep up the pressure. and the escalating assault on isis, he is determined to make sure any possible safe havens like the ones that existed on 9/11, are destroyed. >

tony berkely with an update from kabul thank you so speaking of syria the u.s. is likely to start pulling its troops out of the country in a few weeks the trumpet ministration has been sending mixed messages on the timing but the president's top commander in the middle east says it all depends on how things pan out on the ground and u.s. backed rebels there say they've been making advances against iceland what's being called the final battle to seize the armed groups lost enclave the kurdish led syrian democratic forces are s.d.f. have been focused on and about who's in the east they say they've captured forty one isaw positions since the start of an offensive on saturday twenty thousand civilians have left but hundreds of others are still thought to be trapped in the area but rain has backed down on demands for refugee footballer to return home to face charges twenty five year old baby who lives in australia was arrested in november while on holiday in thailand and wanted him extradited from bangkok to serve a ten year prison sentence for vandalism but it's now

named the government in kabul for violence for aggression against afghanistan and for foreign troopson the ground let's take a listen but the offer of government has to be in this meeting they were not supposed to come because the. regime. movement or for the bombing or so the other one communities were important for government because. according to a legal government to do more to the former president of afghanistan hamid karzai is also among those participating in today's peace conference and i had a chance to talk to him as well and i asked him whether it is a big problem actually that the official kabul is not participating and he has told me that again they hope that one day they will all gather together and i guess the only happen after. last soldier leaves afghanistan so it's a lot about hopes at this point but as experts say the key the breakthrough moment about these talks is that it is happening. and assassination guide targeting members of the alternative for germany party has surfaced on a platform to follow after extremists appears to include step by step instructions in

at least the end may be in sight tony berkely al jazeera kabul. venezuela's opposition is accusing the military of blocking a bridge on the border with colombia the self declared president. has appealed to venezuela's armed forces to allow deliveries of much required food medicine and other essentials risible has more now from the capital city caracas. employee said this maternity hospital in the capital caracas say they are in desperate need of aid they say their hospital urgently needs basic medicines and medical equipment they say the venezuelan government shouldn't get in the way of international aid entering the country. only. this hospital had the best doctors the best nurses the best of everything and now we're seeing a complete deterioration with shortages of medicine food for patients and cleaning products. the self declared interim president why though says the president. is illegitimate he's pushing for legislation in the opposition controlled national assembly to be passed to remove the roadblocks on humanitarian aid members of the nat

that the only hate that it will not take too much time perhaps months interesting that the official kabulis not attending today's peace conference here in moscow mr stein exactly has explained that this is because it is not a legal force the taliban movement has always blamed the government in kabul for violence for aggression against afghanistan and for foreign troops on the ground let's take a listen a different government has a tree in this meeting they were not supposed to come because we're. going to run very libertarian stomaching with the movement of the one and also the other one communities who are in power for government has. according to the north and they go dormant we do not although many see today's peace conference here in moscow as well as are the efforts to bring the long awaited peace to afghanistan as a positive tendency not everybody shares this optimism i have been able to speak to the member of the afghan column and head of women rights human rights and civil side to commission there and she has told me that a vorst majority off she believes all of the afghan society

abandon those who loyally served with little thought for the consequences tony berkeley al-jazeera kabul. several people have been killed in a stampede at a campaign rally for president why would you go hari according to his office it happened in port harcourt in rivers state in the southeastern nigeria and comes just three days before the country votes in general elections meanwhile many people in northeastern nigeria still on the threat from boko haram president mahmoud abbas hari swept to power in twenty fifteen with the promise of defeating the group but four years on boko haram is surging back and many are questioning if they can vote for bihari again i'm going to address reports from roger gori where security remains top of the agenda. despite stitches services here and say three that are tracked for today yes with a triplets to escape. at the end of last year. the children were barely two weeks old when the family fled back in for the second time she arrived my degree a city the family left six months to rebuild their lives. the recent attack on boggle was more ferocious i came fa

previously doctors say children and highways care is need to be vaccinated that's anybody reports from kabul many parents from maine suspicious. this is all it takes just a couple of drops of vaccine and this baby has protection from polio the highly contagious virus attacks the nervous system and can lead to paralysis mainly in children under the age of five. daughters all vaccination program in the capital kabul is relatively straightforward but in rural afghanistan threats against medical staff and deep rooted suspicions about vaccines have led to outbreaks of the virus more than i mean one formulae moment after in the main are not willing to have their kids vaccinated but a lot of effort to be usually convince them to allow it thirty years ago polio was rife in one hundred twenty five countries affecting three hundred fifty thousand youngsters annually today only three countries still suffer from the virus but i was twenty seven cases last year twenty one of them were in afghanistan a lack of access for vaccine teams because of the continuing conflict is a major reason of course for your

the execution was a clear sign of what kind of regime had seized power in kabul. julie serves traveled in secrecy took a bill in one nine hundred ninety seven in order to learn more about the new regime . i had gone into kabul when i was held by the taleban secretly they dressed as as an afghan woman in a burka. they seemed very foreign to me certainly many asked answer conservative muslims but even among them they generally do not support the sort of extremism that the taliban stands for i see the taliban really is an alien force. their attitude toward women or a number of human rights issues i found disturbing but i think it was that larger political issue of them being back i had pakistanis that was most disturbing to me . not. when the tide went to me and called out did you kill your own go down but the need to have a good experience with going to. the toilet my man said bitterly just today it's. still being learning insanities and the mother says they couldn't did it was not cuba to truth that it was a twelve day to national community that was the problem mar

into the country we know that this week some medicines and food will start to arrive to the city of kabul that's right next to the border between colombia and venezuela what's not clear yet is how that aid is going to make it into the country the government of nicolas my boudoir said that that entering that date would be illegal and that's why why there has been appealing to the troops to the military to allow that aid inside the country saying that it's not only for the population but also to their relative to the relatives of the mill military her who are also suffering from the economic crisis that exists in this country today what we know is that the opposition is also hoping to create what they say is a humanitarian corridor that's going to be composed by members of religious groups n.g.o.s and doctors among others and to protect that aid so that it can reach those who needed them most there's lots of talks of dialogue countries like turkey like mexico like your wife say but the way out of the current crisis is that dialogue even nikolai mother would have said that he's willing to ne

-- dubai kabul.hat ride is fairly short, say 20 minutes. you can do it either through europe or direct. host: our guest is michael o'hanlon, sharing his expertise on u.s. foreign-policy. we're focusing particularly on the situation in afghanistan. we welcome your calls as always. leo, you are first up from the bronx in new york. caller: good morning. steve, i like your hair cut. host: [laughs] go ahead. my question to michael o'hanlon is can you talk about the haqqani network? are they jihadists? and to what degree are they getting support from the pakistani isi? host: thank you for the call. guest: that is an excellent question, leo. network, to review the basics, is based over the border of eastern afghanistan in areas of pakistan, and it is part of the broader television network, -- broader taliban network, but it is the is its own cell. it is more extremist. overthrowing the government in kabul, perhaps even attacks on the west. it seems to be more deep rooted in a hard-core, hard-line ideology.

eight thousand recruits every year pass out of this training center in the capital kabul most of them are trained by afghan instructors taught by western military experts who despite the high casualty rate young men are still volunteering to fight it's partly out of a sense of tact to see but it's also because of the dire economic situation here they face the stark choice either stay at home and enjoy your poverty or face the taliban and risk death or injury and that from the e.s.m. it's my duty to fight for my country when our freedom and i'm not afraid of the taliban for the magazine other stuff if i hadn't gone to the army i had nothing else planned professional soldiers say ideally training should last a minimum of a year in afghanistan it's three months that. we would like more time but we make the most of what time we do have. and when they leave here there are able to fight the taliban. but the question is how able are they to fight effectively army pay is low the conditions poor and since the american ground forces left backup is limited recruits are taught to shoot but equall

the key to peace in kabul requires that we have a practical principled and inclusive plan for it but the key is to warren islam about role pindi and quiet or. a peace deal could change everything in a honest if possible ceasefire will be followed by a power sharing settlement a new constitution and then elections a process that might create a new political reality in a country that's been at war for decades. february second marks four months since washington post columnist was murdered inside the saudi consulate in istanbul his body so hasn't been found a united nations special rapper toure has been in turkey for the past week leading an independent investigation was last seen entering the consulate on october second he never left the building prosecutors in saudi arabia have chaunt a number of sounding men with this matter but turkish authorities want to where ordered the killing also held to account stephanie decker has more from istanbul. agnes is wrapping up a weeklong visit here in turkey she's met with the foreign minister she's met with intelligence officials she's met with th

the us can't capital of kabul is prepared for any. form forces of mostly was drawn from the afghan soldiers and police will now be responsible for security in the country. but in twenty fourteen five thousand of them were killed in battles against the taliban. but the taliban hasn't always been an enemy of the west today their former foreign secretary lives in a heavily guarded house in one of couple's bettas suburbs. during the ninety's he was involved in discussions with the american oil company unocal. the i will take my add this. comes in with another yet. but the old are new just for watching us and. then one of them one jewish. but as if to. eleven something to the whole thought alluded to before political will come but it's not as if he wants. it both to let the of etiquette i took the lives of others that it be out of it by the homes but us it with us here out of my psyche of. those if i there was that they think it will last . since the soviet invasion of afghanistan in one nine hundred seventy nine the country has been in a

the key to peace in kabul requires that we have a practical and principled inclusive plan for it but the keys to war are in islamabad roll pindi and question. a peace deal could change everything in a understand if possible ceasefire will be followed by a power sharing settlement a new constitution and then elections a process that might create a new political reality in a country that's been at war for decades. the taliban won't target a new vaccination campaign in afghanistan according to tribal chiefs and clerics but as al jazeera discovered many parents are still suspicious tony berkeley reports from kabul. this is all it takes just a couple of drops of vaccine and this baby has protection from polio the highly contagious virus attacks the nervous system and can lead to paralysis mainly in children under the age of five. daughters all vaccination program in the capital kabul is relatively straightforward but in rural afghanistan threats against medical staff and deep rooted suspicions about vaccines have led to outbreaks of the virus more than i mean one formulae mama after in th

it's been sidelined because the taliban regards the government as illegitimate so joining us from kabul what more do we know about his trip to afghanistan tony. well very little trip but as you said you know it's basically he's on a fact finding mission he's just taking over this acting role from his predecessor mr mathis we don't know mr shanahan's views on afghanistan he's going to find out what's happening on the ground that will help formulate those views but he said some very encouraging things coming into this visit he said that the afghan people have to decide their future and he wants the afghan government to be part of the peace negotiations and that is very important for the afghan government because they feel they've been sidelined somewhat by these u.s. led talks that have been going on with the taliban in doha they are concerned the afghan government with the speed of things which they are moving because even though they say that is a long drawn out affair nineteen years of war cannot be done and solved very quickly mr zimei has been leading the u.s. talks with the taliban

they are optimistic and they are watching these talks closely two thousand kilometers away from kabul they really are weary of war it's been seventeen years they really want to see this peace deal but their big question is at what cost will this peace come they do feel like it was just an franchise like these talks taking place in doha for thirteen million afghans and their future is being decided by the taleban of whom many people do not trust and the u.s. who will not have to live with the repercussions if the deal does not work they feel like it is the a future and yet they do not really have a say the voice isn't being heard at this point in these talks we went to a radio station this morning it's the biggest national talkback station and we listened as people pulled in from across the country the topic for the hour was these talks and the questions was so wide ranging they really feel like they don't have much transparency at this point and they are big questions about pakistan what deal has been put to pakistan to get pakistan to get the taliban to the table they want to know ab

and ultimately kabul itself. now, it will be difficult for the taliban to control the country quickly. and i think predictions on speed are difficult. if we go back to some of the cia predictions in the late 1980's when the soviets withdrew. i will read one of them very quickly and then i will wrap it up. "we judge that the regime will not long survive the completion of soviet withdrawal even with continued soviet assistance, the regime may fall before withdrawal is even complete." they were wrong by a couple of years. not at the end. i tracked down some ambassador statements on the same issue. outlining the potential for a quick collapse. the speed of collapse might be a function of at least three things. one is whether and to what extent the u.s. and other donors continue to fund the afghan government. that is one. the second is the speed of the deterioration of the afghan security apparatus. if the afghan national police and army split and fractured on ethnic lines then we see individuals start to focus their

the official kabul is not attending the peace conference that is because the taliban does not want. this they'd reject the idea of getting the official government in kabul involved in any peace and since everybody should listen to what the taliban won they were not invited so right now it's like this but everybody say and all those we have been able to speak to at this conference say that the talks are progressing well and sooner or later the government will join these afeard but i have to say that there are some people who did not share this optimism for example yesterday i have been able to speak to a member of parliament and they had of human rights human rights and civil rights commission at the parliament and she has told me that the reserve bost part of afghan society she calls it a progressive advanced young. part of the society of ghana stan does not want to go back to the taliban rule because this is quite a conservative and at the end of the day controversial force so this is what's going on right now in afghanistan but experts anyway say that since these talks are happeni

the key to peace in kabul requires that we have a practical principled and inclusive plan for it but the keys to war are in islamabad roll pindi and quiet or. a peace deal could change everything in a understand if possible ceasefire will be followed by a power sharing settlement a new constitution and then elections a process of that might create a new political reality in a country that's been at war for decades. a new road and the occupied west bank has sparked controversy designed to ease traffic between jerusalem and nearby settlements israeli officials call it route four three seventy but it's opponents of called it the apartheid rose the road is separated by an eight metre concrete wall on one side the drive is israeli on the other palestinian sorry force that reports. the israeli occupied west bank is hardly devoid of barriers but few tell the story of division here in quite such a dramatic way this is road for three seventy northeast of jerusalem the left side is for those with palestinian papers the right for those bearing israeli documents side by side but each part of an

a decade for civilians in afghanistan roughly four thousand civilians killed your joining us from kabul you've been spending some time in afghanistan you work for the norwegian refugee council you are in effect a civilian in that area do you feel safe there. i think that we have seen an increase in the. attacks on the humanitarian aid workers. at least. have been directed at humanitarian personnel all their offices all hospitals education. is important as much as we and the. protection of civilians also includes those who are. assistance it is just as important that we maintain that the rights of civilians. i mean safety is protected by all parties in the conflict so while there are gays in the right knowing how it's certainly and there's snow on the ground it feels safe and we do need to make sure that it's emphasized to all parties and to the meal of the no matter what you tell us what you're going to fly from kabul thank you very much. thank you for joining us for the monday program here on r.t. international we are back with more. with make this manufacture consent to public wealth.

interesting though is that and this is one of the biggest concerns that the official government in kabul is excluded from these talks they're not attending because the taliban does not recognize them as a legal power or they reject the idea of that. even though even they blame them for aggression against of going to stand for troops on the ground and as a result of violence in afghanistan so libya want to see with them they don't want to discuss with them anything so now they are being excluded and maybe this is a concern but anyway it's happening and. many say it is a breakthrough by itself well it certainly is a breakthrough isn't it because the willingness of fact that you've got so many important players who can make changes. coming together into one place is a huge step in the right direction they seem to have had a positive impact these talks on the afghan conflict yes it is a positive tendency but there is a skepticism as well because not everybody shares this optimism about these peaceful africa because it is clear that after everything is over the taleban one. probably will play