KABUL (Pajhwok): Former President Hamid Karzai’s Chief of Staff Abdul Karim Khuram in a television debate has claimed that President Ashraf Ghani had agreed with the US to release the remaining 7,000 Taliban prisoners, but the President Ghani office rejected it as false.

Claim:

During a political debate with Kaviyan TV, Khuram, who also served as Information and Cultural Affairs minister in the past, said the Taliban and the US had recently discussed the release of 7,000 Taliban prisoners and removal of Taliban leaders names from black lists.

Military affairs experts Javid Kohistani and Akram Andeshman also participated in the debate titled ‘Withdrawal of foreign forces and complexity around Istanbul Conference’.

Khuram said: “According to my information US Chief Negotiator (Zalmay) Khalilzad, US secretary of state and US president shared the release of 7,000 prisoners with President Ghani who had agreed.”

Fact Check:

Presidential Palace said Khuram’s claim is incorrect and far from reality.

Dawa Khan Menapal, head of the Government Media and Information Centre (GMIC), said Kurram’s claim regarding President Ghani’s agreement to free 7,000 Taliban prisoners is incorrect.

“Neither the US made such demand nor Afghan government has made any decision in this regard,” he said.

He said the Taliban prisoners could be released when there was a major breakthrough in peace talks and a nation-wide ceasefire was enforced because previous experiences showed that incidents of violence remained high despite the release of more than 5,000 Taliban prisoners.

The Taliban have not commented about any agreement with Afghan government regarding the release of their remaining prisoners, but according to Doha Agreement all Taliban prisoners should be freed and the Taliban often called on the full implementation of Doha agreement.

Outcome:  Government has rejected Abdul Karim Khurram’s claim that President Ghani had agreed with US to free 7,000 Taliban prisoners.

Verdict: Unproven

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