U.S.-Afghanistan Tension Grows Over Prisoner Release
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Sixty-five suspected Taliban militants were released from prison by the Afghan government on Thursday, despite protests from the U.S. military. The U.S. Embassy in Kabul released a statement condemning the decision, and urging the Afghan government to make sure the released prisoners “do not commit new acts of violence and terror.”
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Afghan President Hamid Karzai (Image via Wikimedia Commons).
Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai’s response via spokesman highlighted the growing tension between the U.S. and the weak Afghan government: “I hope that the United States will stop harassing Afghanistan’s procedures and judicial authority…If Afghan judiciary authorities decide to release prisoners, it’s of no concern to the U.S.”
SEE ALSO: Afghanistan Will Lead Peace Talks With US, Taliban
The release calls attention to the deadlock between Kabul and Washington over the proposed security pact to leave 10,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan after 2014. President Karzai has refused to sign the agreement unless the U.S. helps to create a peace deal between the Afghan government and the Taliban. The U.S. has called this request “unrealistic.”
SEE ALSO: Obama: US Troops To Leave Afghanistan By 2014
Read more on the prisoners released here and here.
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