Afghan government said on Monday that the Taliban’s refusal to release a few prisoners was a hurdle to the start of peace talks.
This comes as the Taliban announced last month that the they had completed release of 1,000 government prisoners under a deal they signed with the United States.
Sediq Sediqi, a presidential spokesman, said that not all those 1,000 were government prisoners but included also civilians. He added there were a few prisoners that the Talban should release.
“If they are released, then there would be no hurdle to the start of negotiations,” he said.
Afghan government began releasing remaining 400 Taliban prisoners considered to be hard-core last week, but only 80 of them have been released so far.
Sediqi suggested the release is paused due to the Taliban’s refusal to release the prisoners the government is demanding.
France and Australia have called for keeping prisoners convicted of killing their citizens behind bars.
Sediqi said that there were six prisoners that foreign governments have officially raised concerns about, adding the government was working with them to reach a solution.
