The United States has lifted a $10m reward for information leading to the arrest of a major Taliban leader, Sirajuddin Haqqani, an Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs spokesperson says.
Despite the announcement on Saturday, the FBI still lists the reward on its website, saying Haqqani was “believed to have coordinated and participated in cross-border attacks against United States and coalition forces in Afghanistan”.
The move comes after the Taliban on Thursday released a US citizen who had been kept in captivity for two years.
The release of George Glezmann, who was abducted while travelling as a tourist in Afghanistan in December 2022, marks the third time a US detainee has been freed by the Taliban since January.
In a statement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Glezmann’s release represented a “positive and constructive step”. He also thanked Qatar for its “instrumental” role in securing the release.
The Taliban has previously described the release of US detainees as part of its global “normalisation” effort.
The group remains an international pariah since its lightning takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021. No country has officially recognised the Taliban government although several countries continue to operate diplomatic facilities in the country.
The Taliban takeover came as former US President Joe Biden’s administration oversaw a withdrawal outlined by the first administration of President Donald Trump.
The US president had negotiated with the Taliban in 2020 to end the war in Afghanistan, and he agreed to a 14-month deadline to withdraw US troops and allied forces.
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