Afghan Government Rejects U.S. Peace Deal's Prisoner Swap With Taliban

NPR: Afghan President Rejects Timeline For Prisoner Swap Proposed In US-Taliban Peace Deal

Afghanistan's president publicly rejected the timeline for a prisoner swap with the Taliban on Sunday, just one day after the United States signed a peace deal with the militant Islamist group that proposes a March 10 deadline for an exchange of prisoners.

The peace deal, more than a year in the making, aims to end the longest war in American history.

Signed Saturday in Doha, Qatar, the agreement calls for the full withdrawal of American troops and supporting civilian personnel, including those of its allies, from Afghanistan within 14 months. There are currently about 12,000 U.S. forces in the country, tasked with counter-terrorism efforts, training Afghan troops and providing air support for Afghan ground forces.

The deal also outlined the release of up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners by the Afghan government in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan security forces held prisoner by the Taliban.

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Update #1: Afghan peace deal hits first snag over prisoner releases (Politico/AP)
Update #2: President Ghani rejects peace deal's prisoner swap with Taliban (Al Jazeera)

WNU Editor: This is a deal breaker.

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