Kabul, June 11: Afghanistan has on Monday released at least 170 Taliban prisoners from the Pul-e-Charkhi, along with another 130 prisoners expected to be released on Tuesday, a major move that came as peace talks are underway to put an end to the 18-year-long civil war in Afghanistan.
The Afghan government sources were quoted by Tolo News agency as saying the Taliban released prisoners were charged for membership and cooperation with the insurgent’s group.
According to ANI news reports, the announcement regarding the release of Taliban prisoners was made on the closing day of the grand committee on peace by President Ashraf Ghani in early May.
The Afghan grand council has ended on May 3 with a call for stability and peace in the region with the Taliban and Ghani’s promise of release of 175 Taliban prisoners from the Kabul jail ahead of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
On the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the Afghan president again made an announcement about the release of another batch of 887 prisoners as a part of Afghan efforts to convince the Taliban group to engage with them in the intra-Afghan dialogue to put an end to the Afghan-Taliban conflict through diplomatic settlements.
Meanwhile, critics have claimed the president’s decision will have a negative cause on the nation’s fragile condition and that the decision was made out of wider consultations.