Have a Company Welcome to aljazeera after 18 months of talks and nearly 2 decades of war the u. S. And the Afghan Taliban have just signed a long way to deal paving the way to peace and the departure of foreign troops now the leader of the taliban delegation mullah baradar and the u. S. Envoy for peace in afghanistan zalmay her sign the agreement in doha watched by dignitaries including the u. S. Secretary of state and Foreign Ministers from qatar and pakistan under the deal the u. S. And nato say theyll pull out all foreign troops within 14 months if the taliban honors its part of the agreement and that includes a 135. 00 day initial period to reduce violence both sides of also agree to exchange as many as up to 6000 prisoners. The u. S. Secretary of state might pompei or says the agreement is a crucial 1st step towards peace this agreement will mean nothing and todays good feelings will not last if we dont take concrete actions on commitments and promises that have been made when it comes down to it the future of afghanistan is for afghans to determine the us taliban deal create the conditions for afghans to do just that heres our take heres our take on what steps by the taliban will make this agreement a success. First keep your promises to cut ties with al qaeda and other terrorists. Keep up the fight to defeat isis. Osama bin jones our correspondent following events for us from that signing of the deal in doha a long time in coming it was on and off for a while many times over the 18 months osama the must be a sign of relief from diplomats there. Well absolutely as you heard the u. S. Secretary of state saying that the United States would not fight in perpetual in the graveyard of empires that is how the United States saw its presence in afghanistan that is something that the Afghan Taliban wanted to end and it looks like that is what has been achieved in doha after months of wrangling and negotiations this is a process which started 10 years ago when Mohammed Omar was still in charge of the taliban but now finally after the office of the taliban they open in 20032013 rather in doha they have this agreement according to this agreement all sides will have to abide by their respective terms the United States will gradually withdraw its troops you see the 7 day reduction in violence expanded to 135 days and then a gradual withdrawal within 14 months of all american and foreign troops they will be initially leaving 5 bases as youve got government is going to push the United Nations to remove members of the taliban from the sanctions list the Afghan Taliban is going to not just reduce violence but it is going to continue its fight against isis and make sure that its soil is never used again by al fired up so theres a lot at stake but again a 1st step towards lasting peace in afghanistan has been taken you heard from the Qatari Foreign minister as well that the state of qatar has played an Important Role at a time when people had forgotten that there is still a chance for peace in afghanistan and it took up the mountain has been facilitating that process you also heard from the Pakistani Foreign minister earlier saying that pakistan remains committed to a prosperous and peaceful and going to stand for its neighbors as well and on that note of where there pakistans dealings with the taliban are going to be monitored by the United States he told us that pakistan has nothing to hide and pakistan will be making sure that all its dealings are in the open so it is a historic and momentous. Occasion but like you said the proof is going to be in the putting the meat and the coming days and months are going to decide whether peace in afghanistan is going to move from a signed document to reality on the ground and there are many you might say roadblocks in the way as well as our because for example we have a fractious government in kabul at the moment theyve just gone through a president ial election they still cant decide on who will be the president as a such when we have obviously groups like eisel and al qaeda still operating in afghanistan the bigger questions will be how this agreement works in how the u. S. And taliban Work Together to defeat these militant groups or terror groups as theyre often described and how they can manage to bring the government to the negotiating table and get the government in kabul and the taliban to talk to each other many hurdles. Absolutely sue to quote the defense secretary of the United States who said there are known knowns and unknown unknowns and this is where we are at yes it is a momentous occasion yes it is historic that they have signed this agreement but again emirate of afghanistan is the name by which the taliban calls itself and they still want to use that name that has been a Sticking Point they dont recognize the Afghan Government as a legitimate government and say that its been propped up by Occupying Forces they see this as a victorious occasion where they say this isnt the green meant to end the occupation of afghanistan how are is there 5000 release number of prisoners 5000 on the taliban side and a 1000 soldiers that are being held by the taliban are going to be released what are going to be the modalities of sharing power remember this is not in a van a stand which was in 2001 it is 2021 the sun has moved on and that is something that many analysts are going to be watching how these d. Situations take place on the ground the taliban says that it still controls 70 percent of territory on the ground i asked the taliban delegation that it is often said that the government holds the hose the day and the taliban holds the night and he laughed and said that was in the past taliban of the day and the night in afghanistan some of course well get more now lets assume you know as the day progresses lets cross over to the u. S. Now our correspondent alan fischer standing by in washington d. C. This is a huge Foreign Policy success for President Trump is obviously going to run with this in what is an important year for him. Big tick in the box and he needed a Foreign Policy exists as you remember that essentially put all his eggs in the north korean basket in the 1st 2 years how the 2 leaders there had written wonderful letters to one another donald trump saying that they fell in love here hes promised that he will start to withdraw american troops and that certainly seems to be the goal here at the moment theres around 12000. 00 there dont trump has been speaking for years about taking troops out of afghanistan he believes that while it was right to go into afghanistan that they have been there too long in that essentially a view shared by Many Americans and not just Trump Supporters if these interlocking agreements as might pompeo describes the works then the United States will start withdrawing troops within the next 100 days or so down from 12000 to about 8600 and that number will continue to decrease that in perspective during the surge is that we saw in afghanistan when the United States was seeking a military victory there were about 120000 u. S. Military personnel in the country so down significantly in that period there has been criticism of this agreement there are republicans who are worried they believe that the taliban have made promises in the past and simply not delivered i think by pompey or with speaking directly to them in his News Conference just in the last 20 minutes or so when he said we know exactly who we are dealing with so finally this administration seems to have got a deal over the line you remember that back in september there was the possibility that the taliban was going to go to camp david the president ial retreat in maryland that was around the weekend of the 911 anniversary many people thought that was incredibly bad timing torn death by the trumpet ministration that perhaps played a part in the rule and donald trump suddenly canceling the talks although the. It was the death of an american soldier in the country at that time and he said that the deal could be done he might never do a deal with the taliban but we know behind the scenes in doha with the state department with the envoy those discussions continue and that is to the point where we are today for the moment alan thank you of course well come back to you for more reaction from the u. S. In afghanistan of course present a show of welcome to the possible end of the war but also caution that discussions between the taliban and this government while going our agenda for discussion with the taliban be wider than their discussions with the United States they should be ready to discuss their relationship with their state and non states sponsors a verifiable system for cutting off their ties with all transnational terrorist groups their dependence and involvement the narcotics and other Transnational Criminal Organizations positively. But people in afghanistan have been expressing hope about the deal as Hoda Abdelhamid reports. Its a momentous time for afghanistan many still in this believe that what had been unthinkable is happening the u. S. And the taliban agreeing with each other mohammed as eases a beat this has been the most peaceful week kabal has seen in years we can go outside. Our homes without. Fear of anything so its been a good week yeah theyre actually means its between their american and all of us but its a real effect. That will be have lots of effects on Afghan People because the security of afghanistan is in the hands of the americans but outside of kabul in jabal Siraj Shakur Mohammad wonders about his future he has mixed feelings the taliban ruled here before so he knows them well they are something. After all southern and its bad if the taliban come back i wont be able to run my business they forbid music i will have to leave the country for the past 40 years foreigners didnt let us live in peace thats why the countrys in a situation its maybe better if they leave but there will be no peace with the taliban it will be worse im scared the war has been devastating for bibi girl her husband a soldier the National Army was killed in a Suicide Attack in her whole province of lahman then another 4 members of her family died in another attack being a widow with 7 children is stuff they help out by polishing shoes on the streets or begging in the market lot now weve never had any help from anyone its a miserable life my sons collect charge so we can burn it in the stove the foreigners must stay i havent seen anything good from the government and the taliban destroyed our lives its because of them that we became beggars its humiliating only the foreigners can help us. The taliban controls nearly half of the country mainly rural areas where most of the war against american troops unfolded. People have been told that they will fully withdraw soon and theres a sense of victory the. People are happy we also want peace and security taliban are committed to their promise the fighters obey whatever orders they get this is a big success for us back in the cities it up my year is worried she was born as a refugee in iraq now shes a University Student part of a new generation full of aspiration Everybody Knows that tal advance your ideals like how limited and close minded they are and if they come to the Government Officer that they cannot implement on and off they can implement and the people there will be hard as the women call them on and never good with. The people working in the Government Office cells did not have peace between themselves and i dont think it has risen someone else like polamalu if only goes well do us will pull out its troops the taliban and afghan leaders might find a compromise but many afghans remain cautious about the future theyve seen many false dawns before but at the hemi. As our senior political analyst here at aljazeera speaking about whats just going on here in doha yet in afghanistan words of caution real thanks monks the public because the end of the day its their lives that have been in turmoil right at the grassroots of the coalface so to speak for the last 4 decades and they havent got the institutions they havent got the real politicians that they can have belief in the can move this forward so its is it no wonder that every does asking will this work its the 1st step in a 1000 miles as it were. You know. Very similar to iraq. But lacks a lot of the institution that here iraq had had for long and afghanistan has been going through this way now for 40 years since the soviet invasion 979 until today afghanistan has been in a state of war now regardless of how you point a finger at whom whether it is washingtons fault outcry this fall moscows fault pakistans fall taleban or whoever afghanistan has suffered for 40 years why and while might bump a 0 speaks of 1900000000 students going to school and that is a good thing comparison to 2001 but 2001 was also after 2 decades of war so yes there are some tangible achievements within kabul and within those centers of population but the rest of again stand is divided among warlords and the taliban today so its very hard to see how this country is going to be able to put together 1st of all it needs healing the conciliation then it needs to be building building not just state building its actually now at this point in time probably needs some nation building as well because the the the National Fabric has been torn apart so much for the last 40 years that to bring back trust among say the taleban and the kabul government its going to take a long a long while and between some of the liberal open minded. Elites or not so much elites just women and men in kabul who want full equality who want social justice and the taliban that is insisting on some radical fanatic interpretation of islam thats going to take time so on all levels on the social on the religious on the economic on the nation building on the state building theres going to be a lot of work so just focus on one aspect of that at the moment we have a government in kabul you might say in crisis we have the president of the. Not speaking to each other after a yet another election and really understanding who is going to lead to negotiations if they ever do get to the table with the taliban because thats what the u. S. And other stakeholders would like to see as the next move within this next 135 days my sense is that todays ceremony in kabul and i could be wrong that the United States is interested to make sure i shall find the remains the at the forefront of this endeavor if you will and his release of his own peace plan back in october and that aligns this idea that hes in sync with washington or whats next for or against iran because while this thing is going to be going on the United States is going to remain involved the next 14 months and i think the United States will have a say over whose role in kabul and who would be sitting with the taliban because they made that contingent over there with their all from afghanistan but really its going to be important for afghanis not to step up because the United States for all practical purposes whether its the public or washington they have checked out in fact they probably have concluded something musical after the killing of Osama Bin Laden that it was time for them to leave and why havent they left left well its politics and the usual pride and prejudice right now leaving they are and hence in kabul as well as the taliban they need to pick up the pieces come together because theres going to be no one else other than them that will be able to take afghanistan to the next step towards some sort of National Reconciliation which is see what happens for the moment to moment thank you. Well still ahead here on aljazeera well have the latest on the coronavirus are breaking turning a spike in the number of cases in iran to stay with us. However the rain is back again a familiar sight a line of clear that goes from china towards japan on its northern flank is to produce some snow even possibly in north korea and certainly been hard card but its wet snow now its not going to last for very long i dont think temperature in tokyo in the sunshine is 17 and the rain its a bit sporadic its over the waters of taiwan and maybe southern parts of china but hong kongs enjoying 28 probably humid degrees at least once its rainy but some get to monday rains gathering get in the western side of china its dry in the north in beijing the air is moving across is not bad and so is it 8 degrees in the sunshine or about the same in tokyo now the heaviest rains throughout malays are into these are on their way north of the good spreads geographically so if youre in java expect flash flooding in sort of ways the oboy borneo or the southern philippines where those big showers are on their way is a frequent daily event repeating daily event as you can see from the blue and the orange top that suggests hi there for big thunderstorms but west of that most of the mainland of Southeast Asia is still relatively dry but we are start to see a doc pulling of showers throughout india and pakistan bangladesh nepal on a daily basis starting there. Is your deal dead and did you get the peace prize too soon. Is this going to hurt or help Donald Trumps reelection chances anything for money thank you could shoot somebody on 5th avenue and not have any consequence this is not a muslim issue this is a human colony issue join me maddi how can i put up from questions to my special guest and challenge them to some straight talking political debate here on out. Oh. Book about watching aljazeera with me so robin a reminder of our top stories the u. S. And the Afghan Taliban have side a Historic Deal aimed at paving the way to peace and the exit of foreign troops from the country the ceremony in doha was attended by dignitaries including the u. S. Secretary of state and Foreign Ministers from qatar and pakistan under the deal the u. S. And nato say theyll pull all of the foreign troops out of afghanistan within 14 months if the taliban almost its part of the agreement that includes a 135. 00 day initial period of reduced violence both sides have also agreed to exchange as many as 6000. 00 christmas. We want to the days other news that the turkish president recipe for one says hes asked his russian counterpart run to be a putin to get out of the way in syrias the last rebel bastion and it lead it follows the death of 34 turkish troops in a strike by russian backed Syrian Government forces of thursday. We killed more than 2000 syrian soldiers and destroyed more than 300. 00 Armored Vehicles we will prove to the Syrian Regime and those backing them that we are capable of this only yesterday we destroyed 7 chemical jeopardize we did not want the siskel ation it was the Syrian Regime the forced us into it and thats why the Syrian Regime must pay the price as well and also as as turkeys borders have been opened for refugees heading to europe lets speak to how tamara who is in hatay of the turkey syria border and really that the president is putting the pressure on on 2 separate fronts. Well so hale this was his 1st speech after the death of the turkish soldiers in it live it was the deadliest death toll for the turkish mithras says the intervention in syria and he was aware of the public sentiment of the anger among the people about what happened in it live and therefore he he had to make that speech should talk to people in details about the motives of the Turkish Military in libya and why this is crucial for turkey for Different Reasons he said that this was to implement a cease fire the Demilitarized Zone and to ensure that turkey that syria and russia dont continue their push because from a turkish perspective this is just conducive to more displaced syrians crossing into turkey but at the same time he was defiant saying that the intervention was not something just done on a whim it was a request by the turkish people by the Syrian People in prophets and that turkey has a moral responsibility to be there but i think this is a delicate moment for all the players now in italy a province and this is going to be an extremely delicate moment for turkey they stay more the more likely they are to suffer more casualties if theres no political deal any time soon with the russians we are likely to see a. Confrontation just a while ago the rubble said that they have taken control over new villages in japan as we have thats not far from where the Turkish Military are bush was targeted it could be an indication we are likely to see more fighting in the coming days in those areas though for the update thanks very much hashem our brother on the turkey syria border well of course here the front is turkeys president saying that his countrys borders have been opened for refugees heading to europe this was the scene earlier on the greek island of less monstrous 15 kilometers off the Turkish Coast is already housing tens of thousands of refugees and migrants. Inside turkey thousands of people have gathered on the land border with greece which has tightened border controls along with the area have been reports of confrontations with both to authorities and several arrests which i should give them is in istanbul she explains what could have been the motive behind it ones decision to open the borders to europe people have been allowed to cross technically over the border from turkey but now theyre sandwiched in between a kind of no mans land between turkey and greece and what were seeing is scenes of refugees facing a massive cloud of tear gas being fired by greek police and there are also reports that refugees are throwing stones at the greek police the people are telling us who are going are telling us that theyre going because they are trading the stability and security theyve had here in turkey for the hope of better prospects in europe the opportunity to build a future one many people told us they simply do not believe that they have here the bigger question though is what does this all mean is this is a temporary way as are one has done in the past to attempt to get the attention of nato and europe a kind of saber rattling he wants nato to assist him militarily as he continues this offensive in its lead to help retake the last remnant of rebel held territory in syria. The russians have rallied in moscow in the red display of opposition to president putins plan to constitutional reforms the demonstration also mark the 5th anniversary of the murder of politician an outspoken kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov russians will vote on putins proposed constitutional amendments me in april if theyre approved he could retain significant power after his president ial term ends in 2024. Theres been another spike in corona virus cases in iran as infections continue to climb outside of china Iranian State television reported another 295. 00 new infections in just 24 hours a jump from the previous tally of 38089. 00 new deaths were reported cases are rising rapidly in south korea as well almost 600. 00 more were confirmed on friday bringing the total close to 3000. 00 it was the largest daily increase since the 1st infection was reported last month where weeks of strict quarantine measures are taking their toll on tens of millions of people in china but he is struggling with anxiety and fears the future extremely you spoke to one resident from the epicenter who hunt which went into lockdown more than about the go these days 100 and life is simple he wanted the plants makes the bed and watches news about the Virus Outbreak which has turned his life upside down we spoke to him by video call from beijing. The virus spread so quickly i was so. I thought i could die if i was infected. Its a far cry from this life before the locked out running a popular noodle store where we filmed him working in 2016 today hes healthy but the mental strain of being forced to stay indoors when hes on him its stressful imagine you wont allow to leave this room for more than 2 months and can only what weve been this apartment how would you feel its very difficult. Almost 80000 chinese have been infected by the virus but its affected the Mental Health of millions of others says shanghai based psychologist bowden who people are reacting here a lot of anxiety and lots of uncertainty so there is a fear well i can track those wires and i do know how will that impact my health when i die will this how will this impact my family. Way how counseling telephone hotlines have been set up around the country for those struggling to cope many have called in reporting anxiety i did some fearing not just the virus but its impact on their future players uncertain about where will we go back to normal when can i go back to my job situation when i see my friends. Those and a lockdown a fighting feelings of isolation by posting on social media experts say connecting to others and maintaining a routine can help prevent any long term negative impact though he struggles with feeling trapped at harm. Says hes following Mental Health advice and doing his best to stay strong between e. U. Aljazeera beijing. When asias king has appointed a new Prime Minister less than a week after their mohamad stepped down as leader the king of the in your scene has the most support in parliament after winning the backing of 2 of the main opposition parties on friday is a blow from howard who was trying to form a new unity government. Of course you can follow stories on our website and of course that Historic Deal between the u. S. And taliban. To look forward to a long term peace and we shall see what happens in the coming days are borne out of course on aljazeera. Youre watching aljazeera of me so robin a reminder of our top stories the u. S. And the Afghan Taliban have signed a Historic Deal paved hoping for peace and the exit of foreign troops from afghanistan the ceremony in doha was attended by dignitaries including the u. S. Secretary of state and Foreign Ministers from qatar and pakistan under the deal the u. S. And nato say that they will pull all foreign troops out within 14 months if the taliban honors its part of the agreement and that includes a 135. 00 day initial period of reduced violence both sides have also agreed to exchange as many as 6000. 00 prisoners u. S. State secretary of state says the agreement is a crucial 1st step towards peace today is a historic day for the United States of america and the American People today we have taken a decisive step toward peace real peace in afghanistan just as any worthy journey begins it is a 1st step. Nearly 19 years ago american barked at a Noble Mission to mightily pursue the terrorist perpetrators of september 11th attacks and their evil supporters and to prevent such a heinous attack from ever happening again turkeys president recipe the one says his countrys borders have been open for refugees heading to europe thousands of people have gathered at the land border with greece which has tightened security along with bulgaria that follows a major escalation in tensions between ankara and syria. This couple though the watch box jordan the colors yes turkey is not receiving any support no other refugees we will open our borders for the refugees to flee into europe and as we speak 18000 people have crossed the border and by the end of today 25000 will cross on to europe and from this day on we will not close our border simply because the e. U. Has not fulfilled the promises it made we will do all we can until we went in spite. Our other top story theres been another spike in coronavirus cases in iran as infections continue to climb outside of china Iranian State television reported another 295 new infections in just 24 hours a jump from the previous tally of 38089. 00 new deaths were reported cases are rising rapidly in south korea as well most 600. 00 more were confirmed on friday bringing the total close to 3000. 00 it was the biggest daily increase since the 1st infection was reported about that those are the headlines to stay with us here on aljazeera front is next. Is really go to the polls for the 3rd time in less than a year after both main parties failed to form a governing coalition and a Prime Minister netanyahu facing the start of his corruption fraud so it can israel resolve its political crisis at the 3rd attempt at the latest on aljazeera. Over the past 3 months nearly a 1000000 people have had to flee for their lives in syria children are freezing to death but does the world care ill ask a senior u. N. Humanitarian official. Markets thank you for joining me up front your the u. N. Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for syria over the past 3 months there hundreds of thousands of people have been fleeing from their homes inside of lib many of them including kids freezing to death as the Syrian Army Advances towards them is anyone going to save them can anyone save them