Taliban hold first talks in Europe since Afghan takeover

By DAVID KEYTON
Associated Press

OSLO, Norway (AP) — The Taliban and western diplomats have begun their first official talks in Europe since they took over control of Afghanistan in August. The closed-door meetings were taking place at a hotel in the snow-capped mountains above the Norwegian capital, and Taliban representatives will be certain to press their demand that nearly $10 billion frozen by the United States and other Western countries be released as Afghanistan faces a precarious humanitarian situation. Ahead of the talks, western diplomats met with Afghan women’s rights activists and human rights defenders to hear about their demands and assessment of the current situation on the ground.