Taliban welcomes gov’t’s decision of releasing 2,000 prisoners

Taliban welcomed the announcement of the government based on releasing 2,000 prisoners of the group emphasizing the release of all 5,000 prisoners.

In a tweet, the Taliban Political Office Spokesperson Suhail Shaheen said, “Release of 2,000 prisoners by the other side is a good step,” adding “The stipulation in Doha Agreement for release of 5,000 prisoners was to create a conducive atmosphere of confidence.”

“The process should be completed to remove hurdles in the way of commencement of intra-Afghan negotiations and to pave the way for further progress which is to follow,” he added.

Shaheen also expressed the Taliban’s commitment in the matter, writing that they are “committed to release of prisoners on its own part.

This comes as President Ghani initiated a process to release up to 2,000 Taliban prisoners as a goodwill gesture in response to the Taliban’s announcement of a three-day ceasefire over Eid-ul-Fitr, urging the Taliban to release the prisoners under their custody.

The United States has also appreciated the announcement by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

The president wrote on his twitter that he had received a phone call from the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the occasion, noting, “He thanked the Afghan government for initiating the brave process of releasing up to 2,000 Taliban prisoners. He asserted that the US will push for a long-term ceasefire/RiV and start of direct negotiations.”

It is noteworthy that since the US-Taliban Doha Agreement, the Afghan government has released 1,500 Taliban prisoners; where the Taliban too, has released up to 200 prisoners of the government.

The process froze when the Taliban increased the level of violence against the Afghan forces; it, however, now seems that the latest efforts of the US special representative, Zalmay Khalilzad, have been fruitful to resume the process.