Kabul to open traditional council on release of 400 Taliban

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Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, center, wearing a protective face mask to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, attends an Afghan Loya Jirga meeting in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. The traditional council opened Friday in the Afghan capital to decide the release of a final 400 Taliban - the last hurdle to the start of negotiations between Kabuls political leadership and the Taliban in keeping with a peace deal the United States signed with the insurgent movement in February. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)