US, Afghanistan Prisoner Swap Talks Hinged on Guantanamo Detainee

(MENAFN) Backchannel negotiations between American and Afghan representatives over a detainee swap have hit a standstill after the Taliban pressed for the inclusion of a prisoner confined at Guantanamo Bay, a media outlet reported. The outlet said the demand has complicated efforts to revive a fresh agreement.

Over the last year, Afghanistan has released no fewer than five U.S. nationals, yet talks have deadlocked regarding the remaining two still being held, the newspaper noted on Monday.

The account cited three unnamed individuals with direct knowledge of the negotiations.
The report said the Taliban is seeking the freedom of Muhammad Rahim, described as the final Afghan citizen incarcerated at Guantanamo Bay and alleged to have links to Osama bin Laden.

According to the media outlet, Washington has accused Kabul of practicing “hostage diplomacy” and has called for details about the location of a third American allegedly detained by the Taliban. The group has dismissed the charge, asserting that only two U.S. citizens are in its custody.

A Senate Intelligence Committee assessment released in 2014 labeled Rahim an “Al-Qaeda facilitator” who was apprehended in Pakistan in 2007 before being transferred to the CIA. The document stated that, despite being subjected to “extensive use of the CIA’s enhanced interrogation techniques,” Rahim failed to yield any actionable intelligence.

His attorney has argued that the allegations against him are overstated and unsupported by concrete proof.

Kabul previously sought to negotiate his release during earlier discussions with the administration of Joe Biden in its closing months, the media outlet reported last year.

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