The prospect of a peace deal with Taliban insurgents created an atmosphere of uncertainty in the months leading up to Saturday’s presidential election in Afghanistan. President Ashraf Ghani stood firm that polls would go ahead, but his campaign was barely visible. It wasn’t until Sept. 7 when U.S. President Donald Trump stunned even his own peace envoy with a tweet saying a peace deal with Taliban insurgents, which only hours before had seemed a certainty, was dead and the presidential election was back on.
