CIA chief secretly met with Taliban leader in Kabul: Report

William Burns met Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar amid efforts to evacuate thousands of people from Afghanistan.

US Central Intelligence Agency chief William Burns has held a secret meeting with Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar in Kabul, the Washington Post and Associated Press reported. The Monday meeting, which if confirmed will have been the highest-level encounter between the Taliban group and the Biden administration since the group’s return to power, came as efforts to evacuate thousands of people from Afghanistan became increasingly urgent. Burns is one of US President Joe Biden’s most experienced diplomats; while Baradar, who headed the Taliban’s political office in Qatar, is one of the top leaders in the regime that has taken power in Kabul.