(Reuters) – The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for an attack that killed three female media workers in eastern Afghanistan. Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani condemned the attack, which local police initially blamed on the insurgent Taliban, who denied any involvement. Violence has risen around Afghanistan and media workers and civil society members in urban areas have been targeted in recent months even as a peace process takes place in Qatar’s capital of Doha. The Afghan government and the Taliban have been holding talks to try to reach a political settlement to end decades of conflict. But progress has slowed as the new Biden administration in Washington reviews its plans for the peace process, including whether to entirely withdraw troops by May as originally planned.

Source: Egypt Independent March 03, 2021 10:18 UTC