Taliban Name Chief as Peace Talks Are Canceled

Planned peace talks were canceled between the Afghan government and the Taliban, which on Thursday confirmed the death of its founder and named a successor, marking a historic transition of power for the Islamist movement.
The group, which sheltered Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda before the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and has since led a bloody insurgency against American and allied troops in Afghanistan, said Mullah Mohammad Omar had actually died “a while ago” from an unspecified illness.