An Afghan official said the captives would be freed soon, although the government had not wanted to release them on the grounds that they were guilty of killing foreign soldiers.

“They will be shifted to Doha,” he said, adding that top Afghan officials were set to travel to the capital of the Persian Gulf state this week for the talks.

On Monday, the Afghan government resumed the release of Taliban captives after days of vacillating because they had been involved in serious crimes.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Wednesday that Kabul had “fulfilled all its commitments.”

“The release of Taliban prisoners is a clear demonstration of the government’s commitment to peace,” Ghani said.

Ghani said on Friday they would be freed during the Eid Al-Adha holiday, which started Friday and has prompted a national cease-fire for three days, Reuters reported.

The release would reportedly complete the government’s pledge to free 5,000 Taliban members as outlined in a deal the fighters signed with Washington, he said.

“To show goodwill and accelerate the peace talks, we will release 500 Taliban prisoners in response to the group’s three-day cease-fire announcement,” Ghani said in an Eid speech.

However, the 500 inmates are not on the original list of 5,000 demanded by the Taliban.

Kabul authorities have already released 4,600 of those prisoners but are hesitating about the release of the final 400, deeming them too dangerous.

“I do not have the right to decide on the release of those 400 Taliban prisoners who are accused of serious crimes,” Ghani said, adding that a gathering of Afghan elders would decide their fate.

The Taliban, who have insisted on the release of those 400, did not immediately comment.

The so-called US-Taliban accord signed in February stipulated Kabul would release 5,000 insurgents in return for 1,000 government forces held captive by the group.

Late Thursday, the Taliban said they had completed the release of all 1,000 government prisoners.

The contentious prisoner swap is a key precondition for peace talks.

Both Ghani and the Taliban signaled this week they were ready for talks after Eid, provided the prisoner swap is complete.

In an interview with Tasnim on Thursday, the Taliban’s political spokesman Suhail Shaheen said if the Afghan government upholds its promise and frees all Taliban prisoners, the group will engage in intra-Afghan dialogue.

He further called on the government “not to kill the time” and fulfill its pledge as soon as possible.

“We are ready for talks with the Afghan government only if the government frees all its Taliban prisoners,” the spokesman said.

Javed Faisal, spokesman for the Afghan national security adviser’s office, previously said nearly 600 Taliban prisoners whose release is being sought have been convicted of serious crimes. The government is reluctant to set them free, he said.

The release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners held by the government and 1,000 government personnel and security officials in Taliban custody is laid out in a so-called US-led peace deal with the Taliban.

According to the deal, the prisoner exchange is to take place ahead of talks between Kabul and the Taliban, seen as perhaps the most critical part of the deal.

In an interview with Tasnim, Abdul Ghani Baradar said the Doha agreement between the Taliban and the US entails the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan under a 14-month timetable.

“The results of the implementation of the Doha agreement with the US have been positive so far. In the first stage, the US announced it has evacuated five military bases, and the number of American troops has been reduced to 8,600, as this process continues,” he added.

“However, if the foreign forces do not leave Afghanistan on schedule, the Islamic Emirate will make the necessary decisions,” the Taliban’s political chief warned.

On intra-Afghan talks for the peace process in Afghanistan, Baradar underlined that there is no hidden agreement between the group and the US.

The Taliban insist that the Afghan government “should release the Islamic Emirate prisoners according to the Doha agreement to prepare the ground for the launch of intra-Afghan negotiations”, he said, denying reports that the Taliban has submitted a new list of prisoners to the Kabul government.

“The release of all 5,000 Taliban prisoners is the precondition for the start of intra-Afghan negotiations,” Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar stated.

Asked about the Taliban’s push to take full power in Afghanistan, he said the group is after the establishment of an inclusive Islamic administration but does not seek a monopoly of power.

“All Afghans have the right to be involved in serving and safeguarding the Islamic establishment and their country,” he concluded.

A few days ago, the Taliban said they were prepared to hold peace talks with the Afghan government next month straight after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, provided a continuing prisoner swap has been completed.

The Taliban’s political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, said on Twitter on Thursday that the Taliban were ready to release the remaining Afghan security force prisoners in their custody, as long as Kabul freed all Taliban inmates “as per our list already delivered” to authorities.

The prisoner-exchange issue agreed to under a deal between the US and the Taliban, has proved a major sticking point ahead of peace talks.

The Afghan government is supposed to release up to 5,000 Taliban fighters, while the armed group has pledged to free 1,000 Afghan security forces in their custody, according to the US-Taliban agreement.