KABUL, April 12: The Taliban will release 20 Afghan government prisoners it was holding, a spokesman of the Islamist militant group said on Sunday, the first handover since the beginning of a peace process.

KABUL/UNITED NATIONS, March 11: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is preparing to release 1,500 Taliban prisoners in coming days, according to a decree viewed by Reuters on Tuesday, as the United Nations backed a U.S.-led push to end Afghanistan’s 18-year war.

KABUL, March 4: The United States conducted an airstrike on Wednesday against Taliban fighters in Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province, a U.S. forces spokesman said, the first such attack since a troop withdrawal agreement was signed between the two sides on Saturday.