The Afghan government and the Taliban have released more captives as part of a major prisoner swap ahead of formal peace talks aimed at ending the 18-year war.
Some 900 Taliban members were freed from Afghanistan's largest prison outside Kabul as part of a prisoner swap under a cease-fire deal. Former detainees were given new clothes outside Pul-e Charkhi prison on May 26, as well as cash and transport home.
The Afghan government's mass release of Taliban prisoners has revived a flagging peace process. But experts warn it's a gamble that could backfire.
Since early April, Afghanistan has freed some 1,100 Taliban detainees as part of a prisoner-swap deal. The exchange is a precursor to peace talks between the Taliban and an Afghan government delegation aimed at ending the two-decade-old war.
Even though calls for the Taliban to prolong a cease-fire with the Afghan government have gone unanswered so far, there have been no signs of renewed fighting and the militants say they will release more prisoners.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he has not set a target date for a troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, where a fragile U.S.-Taliban peace process has gained renewed momentum in recent days.
The Afghan government plans to release 900 more Taliban prisoners on May 26, as a cease-fire by the militants enters its third and final day.
Afghan authorities say they have released 100 Taliban prisoners as part of the government's response to a three-day cease-fire the militants called to mark the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
As Afghans enjoy a brief respite from violence during a rare cease-fire during the Muslim holy festival of Eid al-Fitr, government officials, Taliban, and international diplomats reflect on the human and material toll this impoverished country is enduring because of fighting.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani vowed on May 24 to speed up the release of Taliban prisoners after welcoming an offer by the militants of a three-day cease-fire to mark Eid al-Fitr, the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
U.S. special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has urged a reduction in violence “by all sides” in Afghanistan, saying innocent Afghans are bearing too much of the brunt of the war.
A quarterly report by the U.S. Department of Defense to Congress has noted Pakistani continued support for Afghanistan’s hard-line Taliban movement in violence in the country.
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