| Submit your comments on this article | ||
| Afghanistan/South Asia | ||
| US forces release 53 Afghan prisoners | ||
| 2005-06-02 | ||
KABUL - US forces in Afghanistan released 53 prisoners no longer considered a threat on Wednesday, saying their freedom was a sign of peace and progress, but at least one of those set free said he had been abused.
"This is a gesture of friendship with the government of Afghanistan and a sign of peace that symbolises continued progress towards a united Afghanistan," US military spokesman Colonel Jim Yonts told a news conference. The "low-level combatants" had been detained for attacks on civilians, US-led or Afghan government forces, he said. The men, all Afghans, were being set free from US bases at Bagram, near Kabul. US forces are believed to be holding several hundred Afghans in Afghanistan. The 53 men were later brought to a government building in Kabul and presented with clothes and some cash before being released. Reporters were able to speak to some of them briefly and one said he had faced abuse. Two said they had been treated well. "They used to torture us, they beat us," said former detainee Haji Abdul Basir, 41. "For 23 months we didn't see the sun" he said. "I was in prison for six months," said Nawab, who said he was only 15. "They behaved well with me."
| ||
| Posted by:Steve White |