3 Killed, Dozens Injured After Militants Open Fire on Protesters in Jalalabad

Afghanistan- At least three people were killed and more than a dozen injured after Taliban militants opened fire during protests against the group in the Afghan city of Jalalabad, Reuters quoted two witnesses and a former police official as saying. The witnesses said the deaths took place when local residents tried to install Afghanistan’s national flag at a square in the city, some 150 km (90 miles) to the east of Kabul.

A Taliban commander and senior leader of the Haqqani Network militant group, Anas Haqqani, has met former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai for talks, a Taliban official said on Wednesday, amid efforts by the Taliban to set up a government. Karzai was accompanied by the old government’s main peace envoy, Abdullah Abdullah, in the meeting, said the Taliban official, who declined to be identified. He gave no more details.

Meanwhile, Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the Taliban should be judged on their actions, warning countries against “prematurely or bilaterally” recognising the Islamist hardliners. “We will judge this regime based on the choices it makes and by its actions rather than by its words, on its attitudes to terrorism, to crime and narcotics, as well as humanitarian access and the rights of girls to receive an education,” he told parliament.