KABUL: The Afghan government said it would free 900 prisoners on Tuesday, its single largest prisoner release since the US and the Taliban signed a peace deal earlier this year that spells out an exchange of detainees between the warring sides.
The announcement came as a three-day ceasefire with the insurgents draws to an end. The Taliban had called for the truce during the Muslim holiday of Eid-al-Fitr that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramzan.
There are expectations that the prisoner release could lead to new reductions in violence, and Taliban officials say they are considering an extension of the ceasefire. A senior Taliban figure confirmed this to The Associated Press. “If these developments, like the announcement of prisoner release continues, it is possible to move forward with decisions like extending the brief cease-fire and to move in a positive direction with some minor issues,” the Taliban official said.
The prisoner release is part of the US deal with the Taliban, signed on February 29 to allow for the eventual withdrawal of US and NATO troops from Afghanistan, bringing to an end the country’s protracted war and America’s longest military involvement. Under the deal, Kabul is to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners while the insurgents are to free 1,000 captives they hold, mostly government officials and Afghan forces, before intra-Afghan negotiations can begin. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had welcomed the Taliban cease-fire announcement during the Muslim holiday.
Javid Faisal, a national security spokesman in Kabul, urged the Taliban to extend the ceasefire.