US, Taliban to start talks on ending Afghan war

World News

Muhammad Naeem a representative of the Taliban speaks during a press conference at the official opening of their office in Doha, Qatar, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. In a major breakthrough, the Taliban and the U.S. announced Tuesday that they will hold talks on finding a political solution to ending nearly 12 years of war in Afghanistan as the Islamic militant movement opened an office in Qatar. American officials with the Obama administration said the office in the Qatari capital of Doha was the first step toward the ultimate U.S.-Afghan goal of a full Taliban renouncement of links with al-Qaida. (AP Photo/Osama Faisal)

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US, Taliban to s... Muhammad Naeem a representative of the Taliban speaks during a press conference at the official opening of their office in Doha, Qatar, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. In a major breakthrough, the Taliban and the U.S. announced Tuesday that they will hold talks on finding a political solution to ending nearly 12 years of war in Afghanistan as the Islamic militant movement opened an office in Qatar. American officials with the Obama administration said the office in the Qatari capital of Doha was the first step toward the ultimate U.S.-Afghan goal of a full Taliban renouncement of links with al-Qaida. (AP Photo/Osama Faisal)
AP EXCLUSIVE: US... U.S. Navy sailors stand in formation aboard the USS Stockdale before maneuvers with the Jordanian Navy in the Gulf of Aqaba, Jordan as part of Eager Lion, a multinational military exercise, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. Under the watchful eye of stern-faced American advisers, hundreds of U.S.-trained Jordanian soldiers are holding war games that could eventually form the basis of an assault in Syria. There is fear of spillover from the Syrian war in this U.S.-allied kingdom, and the potential for a Jordanian role in securing Syria's chemical stockpiles should Bashar Assad's regime lose control. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)
Cuban dissident:... Ofelia Acevedo, the wife of the late Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya who died in a car crash, talks to the media talk about her family’s decision to seek political refuge in the U.S., in Miami, Fla., Tuesday, July 18, 2013. Paya was killed in a car crash along with another dissident in 2012 in Cuba. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)
Especially grim ... In this Tuesday, April 2, 2013 photo, an Indian child in a pink shirt undergoes treatment for encephalitis at a hospital in Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh state, India. Encephalitis is sweeping through northern India, killing at least 118 children in what officials worry could become the deadliest outbreak in nearly a decade. (AP Photo/Biswajeet Banerjee)
Turkey's 'standi... Erdem Gunduz, centre, stands silently on Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey, early Tuesday, June 18, 2013. After weeks of confrontation with police, sometimes violent, Turkish protesters are using a new form of resistance: standing silently. The development started late Monday when a solitary man began standing in passive defiance against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's authority at Istanbul's central Taksim Square. The square has been sealed off from mass protests since police cleared it over the weekend. The man has identified himself as Erdem Gunduz, a performance artist. His act has sparked imitation by others in Istanbul and other cities. It has provoked widespread comment on social media. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
G-8 seeks unity ... British Prime Minister David Cameron speaks during a media conference at the G-8 summit at the Lough Erne golf resort in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, on Tuesday, June 18, 2013. The final day of the G-8 summit of wealthy nations is ending with discussions on globe-trotting corporate tax dodgers, a lunch with leaders from Africa, and suspense over whether Russia and Western leaders can avoid diplomatic fireworks over their deadlock on Syria’s civil war. (AP Photo/Matt Cardy, Pool)
The ins and outs... G-8 leaders from left, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister David Cameron, President Barack Obama, French President Francois Hollande, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy pose during a group photo opportunity at the G-8 summit at the Lough Erne golf resort in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Brazil protester... A demonstrator holds up a Brazilian flag in front of a group of protestors gathered in the main plaza of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. Some of the biggest demonstrations since the end of Brazil's 1964-85 dictatorship have broke out across this continent-sized country, uniting multitudes frustrated by poor transportation, health services, education and security despite a heavy tax burden. (AP Photo/Nelson Antoine)
Airborne laser r... In this photo taken on June 28, 2012, Cambodia's famed Angkor Wat temples complex stands in Siem Reap province, some 230 kilometers (143 miles) northwest Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Airborne laser technology has uncovered a network of roadways and canals, illustrating a bustling ancient city linking Cambodia's Angkor Wat temples complex. The discovery was announced late Monday, June 17, 2013, in a peer-reviewed paper released early by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Italy top court ... In this Sept. 23, 2011 file photo, Amanda Knox arrives at the courthouse for the appeal trial in Perugia, Italy. On Tuesday, June 18, 2013, Italy's high court has explained why it reversed the acquittal of American student Amanda Knox, saying the decision acquitting her of murder was full of contradictions. In March, 2013, the Court of Cassation overturned Knox's acquittal in the 2007 murder of flatmate Meredith Kercher and ordered a new trial. (AP Photo/Stefano Medici)
G-8 and beyond: ... G8 leaders from left, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron and US President Barack Obama attend a working session during the G-8 summit at the Lough Erne golf resort in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland on Tuesday, June 18, 2013. (AP Photo/Yves Herman, Pool)
Brazil protester... Protestors gather in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. Some of the biggest demonstrations since the end of Brazil's 1964-85 dictatorship have broke out across this continent-sized country, uniting multitudes frustrated by poor transportation, health services, education and security despite a heavy tax burden. (AP Photo/Nelson Antoine)
EU, US agree to ... President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron help students paint a mural during a visit to the Enniskillen Integrated Primary School in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, Monday, June 17, 2013. The visit takes place before leaders from the G-8 nations are to gather to discuss the ongoing conflict in Syria, and free-trade issues. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)