U.S. starts to withdraw troops from Afghanistan as peace negotiations face first delay and renewed violence hits the country.
Ghani held an inauguration ceremony on Monday, nearly six months after the election that wasn't called until late last month when Afghanistan's election commission declared he won a very slim majority to stay in office. But that ceremony came under violent attack by the Islamic State, even as it was challenged across town by his rival and former chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, who held his own inauguration and claims to be the real winner.
ISIS later claimed responsibility for the attack, underscoring the enduring threat from the terror group's branch in the region and its possible growth now that the Taliban has signed a peace deal with the U.S.Abdullah, who alleges the election count was marred by fraud, held his own ceremony with supporters, but Ghani's inauguration was boosted by international support, with the United Nations special envoy for Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto, the head of U.S. Forces Afghanistan Gen.
Washington's peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad attends the inauguration ceremony for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 9, 2020. That discrepancy has left talks in limbo, with the Taliban demanding prisoners be released first while Ghani saying it must be part of the negotiations.According to the deal, the U.S. will drawn down its approximately 13,000 troops to 8,600 within 135 days and close its five major military bases -- a process that started Monday, according to Col. Sonny Leggett, spokesperson for U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, or USFOR-A.
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