Afghans free Pakistani prisoners

The authorities in Afghanistan have freed 17 Pakistanis who had been imprisoned for fighting alongside the Taleban.

The prisoners were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in the capital, Kabul.

Afghan officials said the Pakistanis had been captured by the Northern Alliance during its resistance to the Taleban's five-year rule.

Kabul and Islamabad recently agreed on the release of Pakistani detainees in Afghanistan in an attempt to improve relations.

(From the newsroom of the BBC World Service)