Afghan conflict: President Ashraf Ghani rejects Taliban prisoner release

2020-03-01 18:07:26

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani says his government has not pledged to free Taliban prisoners, as stated in a deal reached by the US and the militants. Under the landmark agreement signed on Saturday in Qatar, 5,000 Taliban would be released in exchange for up to 1,000 government detainees by 10 March. Mr Ghani said such a prisoner release "cannot be a prerequisite for talks", but must be part of negotiations. The US-Taliban agreement includes a phased withdrawal of US troops. In return, the hard-line Islamist group agreed to hold peace talks with the Afghan government. The deal also commits the Taliban to prevent al-Qaeda and all other extremist groups from operating in the areas they control. The US invaded Afghanistan weeks after the September 2001 attacks in New York by al-Qaeda, then based in Afghanistan. The Taliban were ousted from power but became an insurgent force that by 2018 was active in more than two-thirds of the country.