60 security forces killed in one week since beginning of intra-Afghan peace talks

Seventy-five more Afghan forces were wounded in the violence.
Taliban clashed with Afghan forces in 14 provinces of the country over the past one week. More than 250 Taliban militants were also killed.
On Thursday, Afghan Acting Defense Minister Asadullah Khalid said that the Taliban have stepped up violence to gain leverage at the negotiation table.
According to UN figures, violence in Afghanistan in the last five weeks has been the highest in the last five years, EU special envoy Rolad Kobia said on Friday.
“With the new – hopeful – chapter of talks opening, it can’t be business as ever,” Kobia said on Twitter. “Taliban must now show capacity to act politically, not as insurgents using arms to twist arms.”
Some members of the parliament said that violence undermines hope for peace.
“Violence increased after we got to the negotiation table,” MP Kamal Safi said. “People have become very hopeless.”
Senator Ghulam Muhiuddin Munsif said that peace talks require parties to stop fighting.