34 killed in Afghan bus blast

HERAT: At least 34 people were killed in western Afghanistan when their bus hit a Taliban roadside bomb, officials said on Wednesday, the same day a US peace envoy indicated a peace deal with the insurgents could be imminent.

Even in a conflict where civilians die daily, Wednesday’s blast stood out as particularly devastating, as most of the victims were women and children.

The explosion ripped through the bus around 6:00 am (0130 GMT) in Farah province, authorities said, along a busy highway to neighbouring Herat.

“It was dark, and the bus hit a mine,” passenger Ali Juma said from a hospital in Herat. “There were many casualties, martyrs and wounded people.”

The explosion came amid a US push for peace with the Taliban that after several slow months now appears to be making progress.

US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, who spent more than a week in Kabul, on Wednesday left Afghanistan for Pakistan before heading to Doha, where he is expected to hold a fresh round of talks with the Taliban.

After nearly 18 gruelling years, the US wants to quit Afghanistan in return for various security guarantees from the Taliban, including that the insurgents won’t let terror groups operate in the country.

Khalilzad, who was formerly US ambassador to Afghanistan, said his visit to Kabul had been his “most productive” yet in his new role.

“I’m off to Doha, with a stop in Islamabad. In Doha, if the Taliban do their part, we will do ours, and conclude the agreement we have been working on,” Khalilzad tweeted.

The push to end the Afghan war has ignited widespread concern among Afghans that in Washington’s rush to exit its longest war the Taliban will be returned to some semblance of power.