Firoz Bashar, head of the Government Media and Information Center, said on Wednesday that “international partners have assured us” that Anas Haqqani, Haji Mali Khan and Hafiz Rashid will “not return to the battlefield” and will “go to Qatar and remain there.”

According to Bashar, the government expects the release will cause “a reduction of violence” and make the Taliban open to “direct talks with the Afghan government.”

In this episode host Karim Amini discusses the topic with Shah Hussai Murtazawi, Ghani’s adviser, and Saleh Mohammad Registani, military analyst.