KABUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st January, 2021) Afghanistan's commando forces released 27 civilians, including a former soldier, from a Taliban prison in the country's southern province of Helmand, the Afghan Defense Ministry said on Thursday.
The detainees were released as a result of the Afghan forces' operation in the province's Nahr-e-Saraj district last night.
"Twenty-seven people, including a former soldier, were released as a result of the operation," the ministry said in a statement.
According to the ministry, the detainees were severely tortured by the Taliban and treated in a way that violates Islamic principles and human rights.
The commando forces also killed a Taliban prison guard during the operation, in addition to seizing some of the group's weapons and ammunition, the ministry added.
Despite the ongoing intra-Afghan peace negotiations launched in Qatar's Doha in September, Afghanistan is still plagued by long-lasting violence that regularly claims lives of Afghan civilians and security personnel. In early December, Kabul and the Taliban took a three-week break in their talks for consultations on the negotiation's framework. The sides resumed negotiations on January 6 in Doha. However, the resumption of talks has so far failed to improve the security situation in the conflict-torn country.
