Afghan FM to Asharq Al-Awsat: A Ceasefire Would Clear ‘Taliban’ from Responsibility for Violence

Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar, Asharq Al-Awsat (PHOTO TAKEN BY: Bashir Saleh)
Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar, Asharq Al-Awsat (PHOTO TAKEN BY: Bashir Saleh)
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Afghan FM to Asharq Al-Awsat: A Ceasefire Would Clear ‘Taliban’ from Responsibility for Violence

Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar, Asharq Al-Awsat (PHOTO TAKEN BY: Bashir Saleh)
Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar, Asharq Al-Awsat (PHOTO TAKEN BY: Bashir Saleh)

Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar stressed the importance of the role played by Saudi Arabia in advancing peace efforts in his country, and has requested from his Saudi counterpart that the Kingdom weighs in on achieving a ceasefire in Afghanistan.

The top diplomat had recently held comprehensive talks with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan on expanding bilateral cooperation in the political, security, economic, and development sectors.

“We are very grateful for the special attention received from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and their eagerness to strengthen the relationship with our country,” Atmar said in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat.

Reaffirming that the Afghan government has met all commitments it made to the Taliban, Atmar said it was the party’s turn to comply with its obligations and prove its good intentions.

“We have released over 6,000 detainees and met all the demands made by the Taliban,” he said.

“Now the Taliban must prove to the Afghan people and the international community that they are fulfilling the promises and obligations they signed,” he added.

The foreign minister explained that peace talks held in Doha were a good start for reaching reconciliation with the Taliban, but remain insufficient without international and regional participation.

“It is an important initiative that opens the doorway to negotiations,” he said about the Doha talks, asserting that a second round of them is coming up.

Atmar hoped for regional and international support to underpin Afghan negotiations, noting that holding the talks alone is not enough to overcome the difficulties lying in the path of achieving desired goals.

Invoking Taliban’s recent attempts to dodge blame for violence in Afghanistan, Atmar said that the best way for the group to demonstrate that it does not want violence is for it to agree to a ceasefire.

He also added that it would clear the Taliban from responsibility for recent aggression levels in Afghanistan.

“The Afghan government sees that a ceasefire agreement would serve as the best evidence on the Taliban not seeking violence and that they are not responsible for the current level of violence in the country,” said Atmar.

Expressing optimism about the new US administration, Atmar said that the joint security talks with Washington are vital to supporting international stability.

“The US and Afghanistan have common interests, especially in achieving security,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat, adding that Washington has “signed binding agreements in Afghanistan.”

Atmar emphasized that Afghanistan does not want to be involved in regional conflict, and highlighted the significance of the support the South Asian country receives from the Muslim World League.



Yemeni Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Houthis Have Lost Nearly 30% of their Military Capabilities

This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
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Yemeni Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Houthis Have Lost Nearly 30% of their Military Capabilities

This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)

The Iran-backed Houthis are in disarray over escalating American strikes targeting military and security sites, as well as weapons depots belonging to them, Yemeni Minister of Information Moammar Al-Eryani said, revealing that the group has lost nearly 30% of its military capabilities.

Al-Eryani told Asharq Al-Awsat that the recent strikes have directly hit "the military capabilities of the Houthi group, targeting mainly infrastructure related to ballistic missiles and drones, which were used to threaten international maritime navigation in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb, and the Gulf of Aden."

US President Donald Trump had ordered the start of the military campaign against the Houthis on March 15, pledging to destroy their capabilities.

In the past four weeks, the Houthis have been hit by 365 air and naval strikes, field reports said. The campaign has been primarily targeting fortified bunkers and military warehouses, especially in the group's strongholds in the governorates of Saada, Sanaa, Amran, and Hodeidah.

"Our assessment, based on our field sources, is that the militia has lost 30% of its capabilities, and this number is rising as military operations continue,” Al-Eryani said.

The minister also spoke of "surprises” that will please Yemenis in the coming weeks.

Trump said Monday that the US campaign against the Houthis has been “very successful militarily.”

“We’ve really damaged them,” he said, adding that “we’ve gotten many of their leaders and their experts.”

The Yemeni Minister of Information considered the powerful strikes “as not enough to end the Houthi threat, especially since the militia is still receiving logistical support from Iran through multiple smuggling routes."

Last week, Britain’s The Telegraph quoted a senior Iranian official as saying that Iran had ordered military personnel to leave Yemen to avoid direct confrontation with the US.

Al-Eryani called for “keeping military, political, and economic pressure” on the Houthis and increasing control on the sources that provide arms to the Houthis. He also called for “supporting the legitimate forces to enable them to take control of all Yemeni territory."
Al-Eryani confirmed that the Houthis have recently suffered significant human losses at various leadership levels, yet the militias have avoided announcing such losses for fear of undermining the morale of their fighters.

Last month, Yemeni Defense Minister Lt. Gen. Mohsen Mohammed al-Daeri told Asharq Al-Awsat that the country’s armed forces and all military formations were at a high state of readiness to respond firmly to any Houthi attacks or provocations.

Al-Daeri said the Houthis bear full responsibility for the recent escalation, the imposition of international sanctions, and the militarization of regional waters, which have worsened the humanitarian and economic situation for Yemenis.