As the coronavirus (COVID-19) spreads in Afghanistan--16 positive cases have been reported as of Sunday evening-- both the Taliban and the Afghan government report a drop in violence.

On Sunday the Interior Ministry said that 16 attacks took place over the past 24 hours.

While on Friday, March 13, the Ministry of Defense reported 95 security incidents in 24 hours. These incidents, the ministry said, included offensives, rockets, shelling and roadside bomb blasts in Kapisa, Laghman, Kunar, Balkh, Helmand, Faryab, Badakhshan, Kunduz, Wardak and Logar.

Marwa Amini, deputy spokesperson for the ministry, said the greatly reduced attacks on Sunday resulted in “five civilians and security force members being martyred, and 19 others being wounded.”

Notably, the province of Kunduz, which has witnessed harsh battles over the last year, has been calm over the last two days, according to two local officials.

“If there are attacks in sixteen provinces, we would have six martyrs but if there is an attack in Kunduz, we might have at least 23 martyrs,” said Safiullah Amiri, deputy head of Kunduz Provincial Council, referring to the intensity of violence in Kunduz over the last few years.

All sides in the conflict observed a seven-day reduction of violence in late February which culminated in the signing of the US-Taliban peace deal in Doha on February 29. During this time there was a significant reduction in the conflicts around the country, according to security institutions.

But following the peace deal, President Ghani publicly said he would not release 5,000 Taliban prisoners ahead of the planned intra-Afghan talks. The Taliban sent an order to their field commanders to resume attacks.

Acting Defense Minister Assadullah Khalid on March 8 warned that the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) would end their defensive mode by March 14, and criticized the Taliban for “breaching” its commitments to reduce violence.

The Taliban said the spread of the coronavirus has not “affected their activities,” but stated that the casualties on both sides had decreased recently.

TOLOnews learned that some terrorist organizations in Afghanistan, including Daesh, had ordered their fighters to pay attention to health measures to combat the coronavirus and to control their movements.

“The message sent to their fighters can be a positive message about reduction in violence,” said Khan Agha Rezaee, head of the internal security committee of the Wolesi Jirga, the Lower House of Parliament.