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Prisoner releases delayed, Afghan gov’t sets condition
The National Security Council says that if the Taliban does not guarantee that the prisoners will not go back to fighting, none of them will be released adding that they can’t be let go under name of “peace” and return back to battlefields.
Sources close to the Taliban underline that the government’s plan of releasing prisoners will take four months which is an explicit violation of the US-Taliban deal.
The government, however, said that the release was stopped, and if it is not guaranteed that it will not return to the battlefield, none of them will be released.
Jawid Faisal, the NSC Spokesperson, said, “The Afghan government has prepared a mechanism to direct and seize opportunities for peace. Dealing with the given list and releasing the prisoners are parts of the mechanism as we don’t want them to return to the battlefield.”
On the other hand, the Taliban insist that unless the 5000 prisoners are released, they will not step into the Intra-Afghan talks with the Afghan government.
Jalaluddin Shinwari, the Taliban’s former attorney general, said, “The government has a plan on releasing the prisoners in four months. It will endanger the process.”
This comes as Islamabad wants both the US and the Taliban to honor the deal and help Afghans reach their demands through negotiations.
Pakistani FM Shah Mahmoud Quraishi called the Taliban “clever and smart” as he thinks that the Taliban are not only good fighters but also good negotiators.
Quraishi underlines that the Taliban understood the challenges before the negotiations, noting that the Taliban have control over 45% of Afghan territory for real and “truth be accepted”.
Some of the civil activists gathered in Kabul and expressed their opposition and concerns regarding the Taliban prisoner release.
Silay Ghafar, the spokesperson of the Afghan National Solidarity Party, said, “The Taliban have violated democracy in the last two decades. They have killed millions of Afghans. Releasing them means dishonoring the blood of martyrs.”
A group of 100 Taliban prisoners was supposed to be released Saturday – as per the US-Taliban agreement.
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Tajik foreign minister urges international community to help Afghanistan address its challenges
Tajikistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sirodjiddin Mukhriddin, has called on the international community to step up assistance for Afghanistan as the country continues to face challenges.
Speaking at a press conference, Mukhriddin said Tajikistan and Afghanistan maintain active coordination between their law enforcement agencies to prevent security incidents along their shared border. He noted that this cooperation remains essential, as the frequency of armed attacks and criminal activity in border regions has increased in recent months.
He said that Afghan authorities had assured Tajikistan they would take necessary measures to stop further incidents and would conduct thorough investigations into any violations.
Mukhriddin emphasized that Tajikistan supports constructive international engagement aimed at improving Afghanistan’s socio-economic conditions. He highlighted that Tajikistan has provided more than 6,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, including food and essential supplies delivered in 2025 to assist communities affected by devastating earthquakes.
The minister also pointed to growing economic cooperation between the two neighbors. Tajikistan has reopened border markets and continues to supply electricity to Afghanistan.
Tajikistan and Afghanistan share a border of more than 1,300 kilometers—over 1,100 km of which consists of waterways and about 190 km of land boundaries.
Meanwhile, Zafar Samad Director of the Drug Control Agency under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, has said that last year, 17 incidents of clashes happened with drug smugglers along the border with Afghanistan. As a result, two Tajik forces and 10 Afghan nationals have been killed, he added.
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Baradar: Afghanistan is not an easy target, but a ‘bitter tree’
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, warned during a graduation ceremony for soldiers of the Ministry of National Defense that the Islamic Emirate will respond decisively to anyone with ill intentions toward Afghanistan.
He said the country is “not an easy target, but a bitter tree that has made the throats of empires bitter and newborns can never digest.”
Baradar also announced that in the coming days, the Islamic Emirate will introduce tax exemptions of one to five years for domestic and foreign investors, based on the level of investment in new sectors. He also said that the process of distribution of land to manufacturers will be accelerated.
Baradar called on countries to engage in political and economic relations according to the values and principles of the Islamic Emirate, emphasizing that energy and resources spent on conflict would be better used to support one another and strengthen common interests.
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Fourteen former Afghan government forces killed in last three months of 2025: UNAMA
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), in its latest report on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, stated that 14 members of the former Afghan government forces were killed in the last three months of 2025.
The report noted that during this period, there were 28 cases of arbitrary arrest and detention, and at least seven cases of torture and ill-treatment targeting officials and personnel of the former Afghan government.
According to the report, some of the officials and forces who had recently returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan were among those subjected to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and detentions.
The report also highlighted restrictions on women’s work and movement, executions and flogging of individuals, and disruptions to internet and telecommunications services.
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