Afghan Taliban fighters are being urged to end their insurgency
Former
Afghan Taliban second-in-command Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is to be
released from prison in Pakistan on Saturday, the foreign ministry says.
A spokesman said the release was to "further facilitate the Afghan reconciliation process".Mullah Baradar is one of the four men who founded the Taliban movement in Afghanistan in 1994.
He became a linchpin of the insurgency after the Taliban were toppled by the US-led invasion in 2001.
He was captured in the Pakistani city of Karachi in 2010.
Secret talks Afghan officials said at the time that he had been holding secret peace talks with the Afghan government and accused Pakistan of trying to sabotage or gain control of the process.
Correspondents say he has since emerged as a figure who Afghanistan and Pakistan believe could help persuade Taliban fighters to lay down their weapons and join peace talks.
Mullah Baradar
- Born in the Uruzgan province of Afghanistan in 1968, according to Interpol
- Helped to found the Taliban movement in 1994
- Developed a reputation as a military strategist and became deputy leader
- Sister is said to be wife of Taliban commander Mullah Omar
- Has been subject to UN sanctions including freezing of assets and a travel ban
Friday's announcement was welcomed by the Afghan government.
"We welcome that this step is being taken," Aimal Faizi, spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai told AFP news agency. "We believe this will help the Afghan peace process. This is something we have been calling for for a long time. It was on the agenda when the president visited Pakistan, so we are pleased."
It is not clear where Mullah Baradar will be sent after his release.
Afghanistan wants him repatriated but Pakistani sources said this month he was more likely to be sent straight to a third country such as Saudi Arabia or Turkey.
The Pakistani foreign ministry recently revealed that some 26 Taliban prisoners had been freed over the past year.
In a visit to Islamabad last month, President Karzai urged Pakistan "to facilitate peace talks" between his country and the Taliban.
He said the Pakistani government could provide opportunities for talks between the Afghan High Peace Council and the militants.
In response, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said he wanted to help regional efforts to stabilise Afghanistan.
Most Nato combat troops are due to pull out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014, leaving the country to handle its own security
SOURCE : BBC
