Key points
- Afghan govt says deal brokered by Qatar
- Afghan fighter Khan Mohammad imprisoned in US released
- US citizens Ryan Corbett and William McKenty handed over
- After Trump’s win in November, Afghan govt had said it hoped for a “new chapter” in ties with US
ISLAMABAD: The Taliban government in Afghanistan announced on Tuesday the release by the United States of an Afghan prisoner in exchange for US detainees, saying the deal was brokered by Qatar.
According to CNN, Donald Trump was officially back in the White House when Americans Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were handed over and on their way home early Tuesday, exchanged for Afghan Taliban member Khan Mohammed who was convicted in 2008 on narco-terrorism charges. Mohammed had been flown by officials from the US to Doha.
The outgoing administration’s plan for the trade with the Taliban was communicated to Trump’s national security adviser Mike Waltz by Biden’s adviser Jake Sullivan. “They are on board with this deal,” the Biden official said. “They have acknowledged it, and they have not objected.”
A senior Trump administration official pushed back on their approval of the swap. “While we would not do the deal that the Biden administration did at the end, we are always happy to have two Americans home,” the Trump official said, according to CNN.
“An Afghan fighter Khan Mohammad imprisoned in America has been released in exchange for American citizens and returned to the country,” the Afghan Foreign Ministry said in a statement, according to AFP.
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“Overwhelming gratitude”
The family of Ryan Corbett, one of two Americans freed in a prisoner swap between the United States and Afghanistan’s Taliban government, expressed “overwhelming gratitude” Tuesday that he was coming home, according to AFP.
“Today, our hearts are filled with overwhelming gratitude and praise to God for sustaining Ryan’s life and bringing him back home after what has been the most challenging and uncertain 894 days of our lives,” the family said on their website.
Arrested two decades ago
According to AFP, the ministry said Mohammad had been serving a life sentence in the state of California after being arrested “almost two decades ago” in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar.
Asked by AFP, the Foreign Ministry refused to provide further details or the number of American prisoners.

The announcement comes the day after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, who during his first term in office presided over a deal with the Taliban that paved the way for the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and their return to power.
“New chapter”
After Trump’s election win in November, the Taliban government had said it hoped for a “new chapter” in relations with the United States.
The Taliban government in Afghanistan on Tuesday called the exchange “a good example of resolving issues through dialogue, expressing special gratitude for the effective role of the brotherly country of Qatar in this regard”.
“The Islamic Emirate views positively those actions of the United States that contribute to the normalisation and expansion of relations between the two countries,” it added, using the Taliban authorities’ name for their government, according to AFP.