Members of the Taliban delegation gather ahead of Saturday's signing ceremony with the United States in the Qatari capital of Doha.

U.S. Signs Peace Deal With Taliban After Nearly 2 Decades Of War In Afghanistan

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2021-08-16 07:30:06

Members of the Taliban delegation gather ahead of Saturday's signing ceremony with the United States in the Qatari capital of Doha. Giuseppe Cacace/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Members of the Taliban delegation gather ahead of Saturday's signing ceremony with the United States in the Qatari capital of Doha.

The U.S. and the Taliban have struck a deal that paves the way for eventual peace in Afghanistan. U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad and the head of the militant Islamist group, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, signed the potentially historic agreement Saturday in Doha, Qatar, where the two sides spent months hashing out its details.

Under the terms of the deal, the U.S. commits to withdrawing all of its military forces and supporting civilian personnel, as well as those of its allies, within 14 months. The drawdown process will begin with the U.S. reducing its troop levels to 8,600 in the first 135 days and pulling its forces from five bases.