Abdullah Abdullah, the head of the High Council of National Reconciliation and the chair of the Loya Jirga, at a press conference on Saturday said that none of the 50 committees of the jirga categorically the oppose release of the 400 high-value Taliban prisoners, which is a Taliban precondition to allow the intra-Afghan negotiations begin.
He said that there no any serious obstacles in the way of the intra-Afghan talks except the issue of the release of these 400 prisoners.
Abdullah also said that there is a consensus about the peace process in the country, however it is vital to seek the views of the people of Afghanistan.
According to Abdullah, the first round of the intra-Afghan negotiations will be held in Doha, if the release of the prisoners is completed.
“The final decision of the Loya Jirga will be shared with the Afghan people tomorrow (Sunday),” said Abdullah.
When asked if the decision of the Loya Jirga will be referred to any other body, Abdullah said: “At this juncture the decision of the Loya Jirga will not be debated in any other organ.”
Abdullah warned the Taliban against making any obstacles in the way of this historic opportunity for peace.
Answering a question about whether there are any foreign nationals among the 400 prisoners, Abdullah said: “They are Afghan Taliban, there are no foreign fighters among these 400 prisoners,” he said.
This comes a day after the President Ashraf Ghani in his inauguration speech to the Loya Jirga said that the Taliban have stated they will start direct talks with the Afghan government and civil society faction in three days if these 400 prisoners are released.
Ghani also said that the Taliban have warned of continued bloodshed if these inmates are not released.
Only hours after the start of the Loya Jirga, the US State Department in a statement welcomed the Loya Jirga , saying the Jirga will consolidate national support for peace in Afghanistan and determine the fate of the remaining Taliban prisoners which are a major obstacle to starting the intra-Afghan talks.
“The United States commends the participants of the Loya Jirga to be convened on August 7 to consolidate national support for peace. We understand that they will decide on the expeditious release of the remaining Taliban prisoners from their list, the last obstacle to the start of intra-Afghan negotiations,” said the statement.
The prisoners were named on a 5,000-member list handed to the government by the Taliban. The Afghan government has so far released 4,600 prisoners on this list but has refrained from releasing the remaining 400. President Ghani on Friday said he does not have the constitutional authority to release the 400 prisoners and, therefore, will convene a Loya Jirga to decide on the inmates.