On February 29, the US signed an agreement with the Taliban that raised hope of ending the long conflict in Afghanistan. The point of contention was a prisoner exchange provided for in the deal. But now there is movement.
Kabul (dpa) - One and a half weeks after the agreement between the United States and the Taliban, the Afghan government has agreed to an exchange of prisoners with the militant Islamist group.
President Aschraf Ghani signed a corresponding decree, as government spokesman Sedik Sedikki tweeted on Wednesday night. According to this, 5,000 Taliban prisoners are to be released in two phases.
The release of prisoners was included in an agreement the United States signed with the Taliban on February 29 as a prerequisite for intra-Afghan peace talks between the Kabul government and the Taliban.
This provides for a gradual withdrawal of all international troops from Afghanistan. In return, after almost two decades of war, the Taliban should hold peace talks with the Afghan government. Up to 5,000 Taliban fighters should be released by Tuesday in exchange for 1,000 extremist prisoners. The exchange has not yet taken place. President Aschraf Ghani had said the day after the deal that only his government could make the decision to exchange prisoners.
The UN Security Council supported Tuesday's US agreement with the Taliban on ways to peace in Afghanistan. The 15 members of the Council, including Germany, voted unanimously in New York for a resolution tabled by the United States that welcomes the "significant steps toward an end to the war and inter-Afghan negotiations". The paper also calls on the Afghan government to actively advance the peace process.
According to the order of the Afghan government published on Twitter, 100 fighters are to be released from the military prison near Bagram every day from Saturday, initially 1,500. They should undertake not to participate in the war again. After the start of the peace talks, 500 more prisoners would be released every two weeks if the Taliban used less violence.
Violence by the Taliban is still too great, Zalmay Khalilzad wrote on Twitter, the US special envoy for reconciliation in Afghanistan. "We expect the Taliban to abide by their commitments to reduce violence so that the release of prisoners can be carried out smoothly and the peace process is successful."
The Taliban said it provided a list to the US and called for certain prisoners to be released, the spokesman for the Taliban political office in Doha, Suhail Shahin, tweeted on Tuesday. He wanted to hand over the goods in the desert or directly in prisons.
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