US envoy warns new violence threatens Afghan peace process

Violence is causing people to leave their homes in Helmand (AP Photo/Abdul Khaliq)

The US special envoy to Afghanistan has warned that “distressingly high” levels of violence threaten to derail ongoing peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

Zalmay Khalilzad’s comments come as renewed fighting for days has plagued Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province, a long-time Taliban stronghold.