Afghan government offers 'share in power' to Taliban

KABUL: Amid rapid gains by the Taliban and taking control of the 10th provincial capital of Afghanistan, the Ghani administration has offered the Taliban a share in power, reported Afghan media.

As per the development being reported in Afghan media, President Ashraf Ghani has offered power-sharing to the Taliban after the fall of the 10th provincial capital within days.

The government has demanded of the Taliban to end attacks on civilians.

Meanwhile, the Taliban have taken Ghazni city, a senior local lawmaker told the international new agency, the 10th Afghan provincial capital to fall in a week and just 150 kilometres (95 miles) from Kabul.

“The Taliban took control of the key areas of the city — the governor’s office, the police headquarters and the prison,” Nasir Ahmad Faqiri, head of the provincial council said.

On the other hand, US President Joe Biden has ruled out any change in the withdrawal of his troops from Afghanistan despite the Taliban increasingly gaining control over large parts of the country.

“We spent over a trillion dollars over 20 years. We trained and equipped with modern equipment over 300,000 Afghan forces,” Joe Biden said.

“Afghan leaders have to come together,” Biden said. “They’ve got to fight for themselves, fight for their nation.”

Ahead of the completion of the US withdrawal on August 31, the Pentagon and the State Department closely echoed Joe Biden’s words, expressing concerns over the Taliban s gains in the absence of US and NATO troops for the first time since 2001 invasion.