AFGHAN REGIME RELEASES 100 TALIBAN PRISONERS

The Afghan government released 100 Taliban prisoners Wednesday after talks aimed at coordinating a prisoner swap with the Taliban collapsed the day before. Afghan government and Taliban officials had been meeting for days in Kabul to coordinate the release before the Taliban withdrew from the talks Tuesday, accusing the government of “wasting time.”

An Afghan official familiar with the development said the Wednesday release was unilateral and intended as a goodwill gesture. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to discuss the release with the media.

The Afghan government is under immense pressure from the United States to move forward with peace talks with the Taliban following the signing of a U.s.-taliban peace deal in February. Talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban have already been delayed for weeks, setbacks that threaten to derail the fragile U.s.taliban peace agreement.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told The Washington Post, “We have nothing to do with the release of 100 prisoners, as it is not according to the agreed mechanism.” He added that “the prisoner swap process” remains halted.

The prisoners released Wednesday were chosen from a “broader list” that the Taliban delegation shared with the Afghan government, according to a statement from Afghanistan’s National Security Council. The statement said those released did not include the 15 senior Taliban members whose release the Taliban delegation had demanded in the first round of the prisoner exchange.