The Afghan Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that an Afghan prisoner in US custody was released in exchange for American citizens. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan considers this exchange a good example of resolving problems through negotiations and expresses special gratitude to the brotherly country of Qatar for playing an effective role in this process.
According to the New York Times, in its final action, the Biden administration released two Americans imprisoned in Afghanistan, Ryan Corbett and William Wallace McKinty, in exchange for Taliban member Khan Muhammad, who was imprisoned in a US prison on drug charges.
Two other American prisoners, George Glazeman and Mahmoud Habibi, are also in Afghanistan, who were captured shortly after the killing of Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a US strike in Afghanistan.
A U.S. official said Biden officials made several proposals to the Taliban to secure all the hostages, but those offers were rejected.
Qatar helped negotiate the final deal and provided logistical support for the exchange, according to a former official.
Overall, the Biden administration has secured the release of more than 80 hostages and detained Americans around the world, the officials said.
The freed Taliban member, Khan Mohammad, was convicted in 2008 and was one of several people the Taliban government wanted released.
Khan Mohammad was accused of helping the Taliban obtain rockets to attack a U.S. military base in Afghanistan and of selling heroin in the United States.
Khan Mohammad was indicted in 2006 and was brought to the United States for trial in 2007, where he has been held in a U.S. prison since.
