Afghan Taliban frees 20 soldiers in exchange for released inmates

The Afghan Taliban on Sunday released 20 government security forces as part of exchange of prisoners between Afghan government and the militant group.

Zabiullah Mujahid, a purported Taliban spokesman, tweeted that the 20 were released in southern Kandahar province. Photos posted on Mujahid's web page showed the soldiers wearing traditional cloths and receiving cash and certificates from the Taliban at an unknown location.

The Taliban spokesman earlier in the day said that the insurgents would hand over the 20 to International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Kandahar.

The Afghan Ministry of Defense officials have not responded to the report so far.

Earlier on Sunday, the Afghan government released 100 Taliban inmates from Bagram prison in eastern Parwan province, bringing to 300 the number of Taliban inmates freed since Wednesday.

On March 11, Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani issued a decree to release 5,000 Taliban inmates on parole.

The exchange process is part of a peace deal inked between the Taliban and the United States signed in Qatar capital Doha on Feb. 29, however, the Afghan government was not a signatory of the deal.

The Taliban also agreed to launch direct peace talks with the government and accepted to free 1,000 Afghan government security force members.