Afghan government, Taliban exchange prisoners

The Afghan government has released 100 more Taliban prisoners, and the militant group has freed 20 captive security forces, as a shaky peace process between the two sides gains momentum in Afghanistan.

According to Press TV, the Afghan National Security Council (NSC) on Sunday posted several photos of freed Taliban prisoners on Twitter, saying they had been released a day earlier.

The health condition, age, and length of the remaining time of their sentences had been the factors considered for their release, according to the NSC.

The Afghan government has freed 300 Taliban militants since Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced that the Taliban had on Sunday released 20 captive Afghan security forces in Kandahar in exchange.

The prisoner exchange came despite the fact that the militants walked out of talks with Kabul last week.

In related news, US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad said on Twitter that the prisoner exchange between the Afghan government and the militants was an “important step” toward peace.

“The release of prisoners is an important step in the peace process and the reduction of violence,” he tweeted on Monday.

He urged both sides to continue the process more quickly given the added threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

ME