An end to the war within Afghanistan seems as far away as ever despite the United States and Taliban signing a peace deal last month. The Afghan government on Saturday postponed the release of 1,500 Taliban prisoners, a precondition for getting intra-Afghan negotiations started. Political turmoil at the highest levels of the Afghan government and the threat of the new coronavirus have cast even more doubt on the tenuous peace process.

As rocket fire landed within earshot, incumbent Afghan President Ashraf Ghani told attendees at his swearing-in ceremony on Monday, “We’ve seen bigger attacks. Don’t be afraid of just two blasts.” Many Afghans fear more violence ahead after Ghani and his political rival, Abdullah Abdullah, each took the oath of office at simultaneous ceremonies. Both claimed victory in September’s election, which Ghani officially won but Abdullah said was tainted by fraud.

A truce went into effect at midnight on Thursday amid escalated fighting in northwestern Syria. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to create a security corridor along a major highway and conduct joint patrols beginning March 15. They also plan to help more than 900,000 people displaced by the fighting to return home.

The United States carried out a defensive strike against Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, less than a week after signing a peace agreement with the insurgent group. The strike answered a Taliban assault on Afghan government forces that killed at least 11 soldiers and four civilians, U.S. military spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett said.

An airstrike killed at least 33 Turkish soldiers in northwestern Syria on Thursday. The soldiers fought alongside rebels in Idlib province along the border between Turkey and Syria, where the Russian-backed Syrian army is trying to regain control. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held an urgent security meeting, and the country said it retaliated by hitting 200 government targets and “neutralizing” 309 soldiers.

Warning sirens continued to blare across southern Israel on Monday. Israeli jets launched retaliatory strikes against jihadists in the Gaza Strip and Syria after more than 20 rockets from Gaza entered its territory on Sunday. The Israeli military said it intercepted another 12 of 14 rockets fired on Monday. Palestinian Islamic Jihad confirmed two of its fighters died in Syria. The organization said it would avenge their deaths.

The trial period for a U.S.-Taliban truce is set to begin Friday night. The seven-day “reduction of violence” precedes the signing of a peace agreement, paving the way for the eventual withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan after 18 years of war.