number of troops stationed in Afghanistan in non-combatant roles over the next 14 months in order to end the war in Afghanistan. Developments in 2020 In the aftermath of this deal, experts at the RAND organization stressed the potentially harmful consequences of reducing troop numbers too quickly, stating that fast removal of troops could result in a "blow to American credibility, the weakening of deterrence and the value of the US reassurance elsewhere, an increased terrorist threat emanating from the Afghan region, and the distinct possibility of a necessary return under worse conditions." One of the four main issues within the signed peace agreement was a "reduction in violence", i.e., a cease fire, between Afghan, American, and Taliban troops in order to facilitate an environment in which U.S. troops could leave the region and ensure the peaceful onset of intra-Afghanistan Taliban-Afghan peace negotiations. However, less than a week after the US-Taliban peace agreements violence in Afghanistan continued, with two ISIL gunmen killing 32 civilians and wounding at least 58 in crowd of people attending a political event hosted by the opposition leader Abdullah Abdullah on the 6th of March, and a Taliban ambush attack on the police and army outpost in Zabul Province killing 24 Afghan security forces on March 20, 2020. The Afghan Ministry of Defense reacted to the Taliban's attack by stating that the "Afghan National Defense Security Forces will not leave this attack without response, and will take the revenge of the blood of the martyrs," threatening the signatory's commitment to reduce violence between their forces. Plans for negotiations between the Afghans and Taliban leadership were further complicated not only by continued violence between the two sides, but also due to a presidential election that led to a governmental split, with President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah "separately taking the oath of office" in individual ceremonies on the 9th of March. Furthermore, with the sudden outbreak of COVID-19, US troop withdrawal was complicated by quarantine methods necessitated by directives from the Pentagon requiring returning troops to be placed in short-term quarantine. According to the New York Times, "at least 300 troops from the 82nd Airborne division returning from Afghanistan have had to self-quarantine at Fort Bragg, N.C., and dozens more from the 1st Armored Division are doing the same at Fort Bliss, Tex." Withdrawal of U.S troops On April 13, 2021, US President Joe Biden announced the