Taliban releases two American prisoners held in Afghanistan as ‘goodwill gesture’

The release of two Americans kidnapped in Afghanistan on Tuesday was described by US officials as a “gesture of goodwill.”

It is reported that the Americans arrived in Qatar on Tuesday to be reunited with their families. It is unclear at this time what steps were made to ensure their return home.

Officials withheld the names of the released convicts out of respect for their privacy.

Ivor Shearer, a filmmaker who was imprisoned in August when in the region where al-Qaeda commander Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed by a U.S. drone, is reportedly one of the Americans sent free, according to CNN sources.

CNN stated that it would not release the name of the second prisoner at the family’s request.

Ned Price, a spokesman for the State Department, stated that the release was not part of a prisoner swap and that no money was exchanged. He noted that it appeared to be a “gesture of goodwill” from the Taliban.

Ned Price, a spokesman for the State Department, stated that the release was not part of a prisoner swap and looked to be a “goodwill gesture.”

Price stated, “We are giving these two American citizens with every proper help.” They will soon be reunited with their loved ones, and we are ecstatic about this development.

Shearer and his Afghan producer Faizullah Faizbakhsh were arrested while filming in Kabul in August of this year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

The two were questioned about their reason for being in the area and were required to present their work permits, passports, and identification cards. According to initial accounts, the media workers’ mobile phones were confiscated before they were blindfolded and jailed.

The release of the Americans coincided with the Taliban’s suspension of university education for female students in Afghanistan, the latest assault on women’s rights since the group’s ascent to power a year ago.

The Taliban had stated that girls would be permitted to continue their education at all levels, but later reneged on this promise.

Neda Mohammad Nadeem, the country’s minister for higher education, sent a letter to all public and private universities urging them to restrict university study for women statewide.

“You are all thus notified of the order to cease female education until further notice,” it stated.

Women in Afghanistan are prohibited indefinitely from attending universities.

Hundreds of young women were denied entry to institutions in Afghanistan this morning, hours after the Taliban imposed a ban on their enrollment.

Armed guards prevented students from attending universities on Wednesday, a day after the country’s Taliban rulers banned them in a further violation of human rights.

‘We are doomed. We have lost everything,’ claimed a student who requested anonymity.

Ned Price, a spokesman for the State Department, criticized the decision and told reporters in Washington, ‘The Taliban should anticipate that this decision, which is contrary to the commitments they have repeatedly and openly made to their own people, will have actual consequences for them.’

The release of the Americans occurred barely weeks after the release of American basketball player Brittney Griner from a Russian jail camp in exchange for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.