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Bashar Noorzai sentenced to life in prison in the United States for supporting Taliban, having ties with Osama bin Laden, the former leader of al-Qaeda network and smuggling drugs to the US at the of cost 50 million dollars.
AT News
KABUL: Taliban’s head of political office Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar in a video call with the US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, has asked for the release of an Afghan national imprisoned by America, Hajji Bashar Noorzai.
Noorzai was sentenced to life in prison in the United States for supporting Taliban, having ties with Osama bin Laden, the former leader of al-Qaeda network and smuggling drugs to the US at the of cost 50 million dollars.
Suhail Shahin, spokesman for Taliban’s political office, said Tuesday that Mullah Baradar also called for the release of the Afghans kept in the Guantanamo jail as well. However, he didn’t provide details about Pompeo’s response.
Noorzai was an influential tribal elder who handed thousands of arms and hundreds of Stinger rockets to the US military after the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan that caused the collapse of Taliban rule.
Noorzai’s advocate had told Western media in 2008 that he was invited by the US representatives to Dubai in 2004 for cooperating with them in identifying supporters of terrorist groups. Later, he was invited to the United States in 2005, where he was interrogated for 11 days, according to his lawyer.
Sayed Akbar Agha, a former Taliban commander, confirmed that Noorzai was in good relationship with Taliban, therefore, the insurgent group demanded his release.
“The Taliban did not demand only the release of Hajji Bashar (Noorzai) from the US, but they also asked for the release of two other Afghans held in Guantanamo jail. This shows that Taliban want all Afghan prisoners be released from US jails.”
According to reports, Taliban want the release of some drug lords from Afghan jails.
