Are ISIS fighters prisoners or guests?

SHEBERGHAN, Afghanistan — The top commander of the Islamic State group in northern Afghanistan stood behind a lectern decorated with the shield of the Afghan government’s intelligence agency.

On his left was the police general in charge of the province. Arrayed behind him was an assortment of other dignitaries: police, army, political figures.

This is how the Islamic State commander, Maulavi Habib ul-Rahman, began his “imprisonment” Thursday. Along with 250 of his fighters, Rahman had surrendered the day before to the Afghan government in the northern province of Jowzjan, to avoid being captured by the Taliban.

He thanked his hosts and warned them to stick to the deal they had just made. “Provide us with personal security as well as stay loyal to the commitments made between us so it prepares the ground for others who fight against the government to join the peace process,” Rahman demanded.

Peace process? Officially, Rahman, another Islamic State commander, hundreds of fight- ers and 20 relatives traveling with them were prisoners who had turned themselves in to the government to avoid imminent capture by Taliban insurgents who had conducted a monthlong offensive against them.

Other insurgents have joined the government side through a formal peace process open to those not accused of human rights abuses, but that is not a possibility with the Islamic State militants, officials insisted.

If they were prisoners, however, it was hard to tell. The government arranged for them to stay in a guesthouse in the provincial capital of Sheberghan. Guards were posted around it not to keep the insurgents in, but to keep their potential enemies out, according to the provincial governor.

The dubious nature of the Islamic State surrender has proved a propaganda bonanza for the Taliban, which began an offensive with thousands of fighters about a month ago to wipe out the Islamic State in the north. All their fighters have now surrendered, been captured by the Taliban or been killed, according to Mufti Nemat, an Islamic State commander, as well as government and Taliban spokesmen.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.