Taliban releases 3 Indian engineers after prisoner swap agreement

(Reporters Today, Bhubaneswar): The Afghan Taliban said it has freed three Indian engineers held hostage for over a year in an exchange for securing the release of 11 of its members, including important leaders of the militant group, said a media report on Monday.

The Indian government has not yet been notified of the release of Indian engineers. The Indian government sources maintain that they are in touch with the Afghanistan government as reports of the release have brought to their notice.

Seven Indian engineers working for a power plant in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan Province were kidnapped in May 2018. One of the hostages was released in March.

The freed Afghan Taliban leaders include Sheikh Abdul Rahim and Maulvi Abdur Rashid. Both these Taliban leaders have served as governors of Kunar and Nimroz provinces during the Taliban administration before the US-led intervention in 2001.

The prisoner swap was done in the early hours of Sunday (October 6, 2019) at an undisclosed location. The release of Indian prisoners is being confirmed by the Afghan Taliban but is not being verified by the Afghan government.