Taliban militants killed at least 26 members of a pro-government militia in north Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said, as the Taliban and US negotiators were set to begin a seventh round of peace talks in Qatar. In the early hours of Saturday, insurgents stormed security posts in the northerly province of Baghlan. A provincial police spokesman said 26 militiamen had been killed. A senior Defence Ministry official in Kabul said the attack indicated that the Taliban wanted to negotiate from a position of strength.

Copyright Reuters, 2019