The National: ‘Taliban five’ released from Guantanamo join group's Qatar political office
The men were released from the notorious US prison in exchange for Sgt Bowe Bergdahl
Five senior Taliban leaders freed from Guantanamo Bay in return for a captured American soldier have joined the militants' Qatar office responsible for peace talks.
The five men who spent more than a decade in the US military prison will now be in the Taliban's delegation during upcoming attempts to find a political settlement to the country's conflict.
America has significantly escalated its push to start tentative negotiations, with senior US officials already meeting Taliban envoys twice in recent months.
The militants' appointment of the so-called Taliban Five also came just days after the release from Pakistani jail of another senior Taliban figure, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, was also linked to potential talks.
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Update: 5 freed from Gitmo in exchange for Bergdahl join insurgents in Qatar, Taliban says (Military Times/AP)
WNU Editor: The U.S. is hoping for progress .... but all I see is more bloodshed and more incidents like this .... Taliban Floggings Hint At New Crackdown On Smartphones (RFE).
My prediction.
These men are key Taliban leaders. The U.S. and the Afghan people are going to regret the release of these monsters one day.
3 comments:
At the time this deal was made, it did not look to me like it was a good deal. With that said we need to end the war in Afghanistan. In this process, realpolitik will likely need to be used at times.
If the "Taliban five" can add value to this process and we can achieve an end to this whereby America's legitimate security needs are honored and respected, then this "trade" for Bergdahl who by all appearances seems to be either a traitor a messed up individual may have been a good deal after all.
Part of any settlement will obviously have to include a complete withdrawal of all US personnel from Afghanistan. Since they are eventually going to have to be withdrawn anyway, it'd be best to get it done as part of a settlement to end our involvement in the war.
It seems the Yemeni President has departed the Earth and joined the invisible choir.
JH
Those guys sure look fun
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