PESHAWAR: Three Taliban commanders who are part of a prisoner swap for twoWestern hostages held by the militant group have landed in Qatar, threeTaliban sources familiar with the deal said on Tuesday.
The Afghan government’s decision to carry out the swap is seen as key tosecuring direct talks with the militants, who have, until now, refused toengage with what they call an illegitimate “puppet” regime in Kabul.
The sources, including one in Qatar, home to the political leadership ofthe Taliban, said their hostages, American Kevin King and AustralianTimothy Weeks, both university professors, would be released later onTuesday.
“Our three prisoners had been freed on Monday night,” said one of thesources, a senior Taliban leader in Afghanistan, who declined to beidentified because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the deal.
“Soon after their release, they were flown to Doha and handed over to thepolitical office in Qatar.”
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Representatives of the Afghan government and the United States embassy inKabul were not immediately available for comment.
On Nov. 12, President Ashraf Ghani said Afghanistan would free AnasHaqqani, a senior figure in the eponymous Haqqani network responsible forsome of the worst violence in recent years, and two Taliban commanders.
