Pakistan has released
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of the founding
members of the Afghan Taliban, foreign ministry
spokesman Aizaz Chaudhry told CNN on Saturday.
Baradar, who had been held in a secret location, used
to be the organization's second-in-command, after
Mullah Mohammed Omar himself.
"Afghan President's office welcomes the release of
Mullah Baradar from jail in Pakistan," Aimal Faizi,
spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai, said on
Twitter.
Pakistani officials this month announced their plans to
release Baradar "in principle."
Baradar was captured in 2010 in Karachi, Pakistan's
largest city, which is known to be a haven for many
militants from across the country and its bordering
regions.
This is the second peaceful overture by the newly
elected Pakistani government to neighboring
Afghanistan. On September 7, it released seven Taliban
figures to facilitate the peace process.
That release came just two weeks after Afghan President
Hamid Karzai visited the capital of Islamabad and
stressed Pakistan's assistance in a path to peace. Karzai
has long pushed for Baradar's release; his government
was suspected to be in secret talks with the wanted
militant when he was captured.
The Afghan Taliban said this month that it welcomed
the Pakistani government's plan to release Baradar and
that it was assessing the wider situation.
"Pakistan's move to release seven top commanders at
the weekend and plans to release Mullah Baradar is a
positive development. We'll respond as things shape up
over the coming days and weeks," spokesman Zabiullah
Muajhid told CNN at the time.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad,
Meghan Gregonis, had said Pakistan and Afghanistan
should have proper coordination to "ensure releases
are effected in a responsible manner."
Baradar had been under United Nations sanctions since
February 2001, with his assets frozen and travel
banned. The U.N. had forbidden selling weapons to
him.
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of the founding
members of the Afghan Taliban, foreign ministry
spokesman Aizaz Chaudhry told CNN on Saturday.
Baradar, who had been held in a secret location, used
to be the organization's second-in-command, after
Mullah Mohammed Omar himself.
"Afghan President's office welcomes the release of
Mullah Baradar from jail in Pakistan," Aimal Faizi,
spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai, said on
Twitter.
Pakistani officials this month announced their plans to
release Baradar "in principle."
Baradar was captured in 2010 in Karachi, Pakistan's
largest city, which is known to be a haven for many
militants from across the country and its bordering
regions.
This is the second peaceful overture by the newly
elected Pakistani government to neighboring
Afghanistan. On September 7, it released seven Taliban
figures to facilitate the peace process.
That release came just two weeks after Afghan President
Hamid Karzai visited the capital of Islamabad and
stressed Pakistan's assistance in a path to peace. Karzai
has long pushed for Baradar's release; his government
was suspected to be in secret talks with the wanted
militant when he was captured.
The Afghan Taliban said this month that it welcomed
the Pakistani government's plan to release Baradar and
that it was assessing the wider situation.
"Pakistan's move to release seven top commanders at
the weekend and plans to release Mullah Baradar is a
positive development. We'll respond as things shape up
over the coming days and weeks," spokesman Zabiullah
Muajhid told CNN at the time.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad,
Meghan Gregonis, had said Pakistan and Afghanistan
should have proper coordination to "ensure releases
are effected in a responsible manner."
Baradar had been under United Nations sanctions since
February 2001, with his assets frozen and travel
banned. The U.N. had forbidden selling weapons to
him.
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