The Taliban said they freed on Tuesday an American and an Australian hostage held since 2016 in exchange for three top Taliban figures who were released by the Kabul government and flown out of Afghanistan the previous day. The hostages — American, Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks — were released in southern Zabul province, ending their more than three years in captivity. AdvertisementTheir freedom came hours after the Afghan government freed three Taliban prisoners and sent them to Qatar. It appears the Taliban had refused to hand over the two professors until they received proof their men had reached Qatar. King and Weeks, the two captives held by the Taliban were abducted in 2016 outside the American University in Kabul.

Source: Los Angeles Times November 19, 2019 08:05 UTC