Afghan Taliban Prisoners Release 'Imminent' , Pakistan Official Says

Pakistan Plans To Release All Afghan Taliban Prisoners
TO GO WITH Afghanistan-unrest-prison,FOCUS by Ben Sheppard In this picture taken on January 4 ,2013, released Taliban prisoners sit on chairs and pray during a ceremony in Pul-e-Charkhi jail. With tears streaming down their faces, scores of suspected Afghan militants embraced waiting relatives and walked to freedom -- just one sign of increasing attempts at reconciliation after 11 years of war. About 80 men, all wearing white skull caps, were released from jail on January 4, 2013, at a ceremony inside Pul-e-Charkhi, Afghanistan's largest prison located on dusty flatlands east of the capital Kabul. AFP PHOTO/ Massoud HOSSAINI s (Photo credit should read MASSOUD HOSSAINI/AFP/Getty Images)
TO GO WITH Afghanistan-unrest-prison,FOCUS by Ben Sheppard In this picture taken on January 4 ,2013, released Taliban prisoners sit on chairs and pray during a ceremony in Pul-e-Charkhi jail. With tears streaming down their faces, scores of suspected Afghan militants embraced waiting relatives and walked to freedom -- just one sign of increasing attempts at reconciliation after 11 years of war. About 80 men, all wearing white skull caps, were released from jail on January 4, 2013, at a ceremony inside Pul-e-Charkhi, Afghanistan's largest prison located on dusty flatlands east of the capital Kabul. AFP PHOTO/ Massoud HOSSAINI s (Photo credit should read MASSOUD HOSSAINI/AFP/Getty Images)

ABU DHABI, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Pakistan plans to release all Afghan Taliban prisoners still in its detention, including the group's former second-in-command, an official said on Friday, the clearest signal yet that it backs reconciliation efforts.

"The remaining detainees, we are coordinating, and they will be released subsequently," Jalil Jilani, Pakistan's foreign secretary, said at a news conference in Abu Dhabi.

Asked if the former Taliban number 2 Mullah Baradar would be among those to be released, he said: "The aim is to release all," without elaborating further.

Before You Go

Rainbow Steps, Brazil

Week In Photos

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot