US-Taliban peace deal further imperiled by issue of prisoner exchange

Published: March 11, 2020, 10 p.m.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has approved the release of 1,500 Taliban prisoners as part of efforts to reach a peace deal with the insurgent group. The Taliban in turn will release 1,000 captured Afghan government troops. Ghani’s presidential decree compels released Taliban prisoners to sign a promise saying that they would not take up the fight again. The US had asked him to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners, a number at which he balked. Brian and John speak with Brian Terrell, a long time peace activist and a co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence.