A prisoner from Afghanistan was released by the U.S. in exchange for two American citizens, according to officials in Afghanistan. The prisoner, named Khan Mohammad, had been serving a life sentence in California for serious crimes. Khan was arrested almost 20 years ago in Nangarhar, Afghanistan, and then sent to the U.S. for trial.
While the names of the two American citizens who were freed weren’t officially shared, reports say they are Ryan Corbett and William McKenty. Their release happened early on Tuesday.
Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban, confirmed that two Americans were exchanged but didn’t reveal their identities. However, it is known that two other Americans still remain in Afghanistan: George Glezmann, an ex-airline mechanic, and Mahmood Habibi, a naturalized American who was captured after a U.S. attack that killed Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri.
This prisoner swap took years to arrange and happened in the final hours of Joe Biden’s presidency before Donald Trump took over. Qatar played an important role in helping organize the exchange. The family of Ryan Corbett expressed gratitude to both the Trump and Biden administrations but felt sad that Glezmann and Habibi were not included in the exchange.
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