Taliban won’t take part in talks with Afghan govt until prisoners released – spokesman

The Taliban will not take part in talks with the government in Kabul until about 5,000 of its prisoners are released, a spokesman said on Monday, presenting a possible major barrier to ending the war.

“We are fully ready for the intra-Afghan talks, but we are waiting for the release of our 5,000 prisoners,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters by phone. Under an accord between the US and the Taliban signed on Saturday, the two sides are committed to working towards the release of combat and political prisoners as a confidence-building measure.

The agreement calls for up to 5,000 jailed Taliban prisoners to be released in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan government captives by March 10. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who is not involved in the talks, has since rejected that demand.

Ghani said on Sunday that US President Donald Trump had not asked for the release of the prisoners and that the issue of prisoner releases should be discussed as part of a comprehensive peace deal.