The Taliban say that Afghanistan's Embassy in Oman has reopened. It’s the latest sign of their growing inclusion among Gulf Arab countries and follows the acceptance by the United Arab Emirates of a Taliban ambassador last month.

The Taliban have suspended polio vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan, the UN said Monday. It's a devastating setback for polio eradication, since the virus is one of the world's most infectious and any unvaccinated groups of children where the virus is spreading could undo years of progress.

Afghanistan’s Embassy in Oman has reopened, an official in Kabul said Tuesday, the latest sign of the growing inclusion of the Taliban among Gulf Arab countries following the United Arab Emirates’ acceptance of a Taliban ambassador last month.

Veteran Afghan warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum has reportedly called on groups that oppose the fundamentalist Taliban to unite to create a parallel government-in-exile for Afghanistan that will move to dislodge the extremist group from power.