The Taliban attacked a second Afghan city in as many days on Sunday, killing several civilians and security forces, officials said, even as Washington’s peace envoy said the U.S. and the militant group are “at the threshold of an agreement” to end America’s longest war. The attack on the capital of Baghlan province came hours after U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said he warned the Taliban during talks in Qatar that “violence like this must stop.” But he appeared determined to move forward on a deal that plans to withdraw some 14,000 remaining U.S. troops in exchange for Taliban guarantees that Afghanistan will not be used as a launch pad for global attacks.
