Afghan Army deserter Hekmatullah, who murdered three Australian soldiers , is being transferred to a detention facility in Qatar

Afghan Army deserter Hekmatullah, who murdered three off-duty Australian soldiers in 2012 in a cold-blooded crime of betrayal, is being transferred to a detention facility in Qatar by the Government of Afghanistan.

We understand Hekmatullah will be held in detention in Qatar with five other highly sensitive prisoners. These six prisoners were convicted of killing Coalition soldiers, or civilian humanitarian workers, in a series of insider attacks. The Government of Qatar has undertaken to the Government of Afghanistan and to the United States to keep these detainees confined and isolated.

Australia has steadfastly maintained that Hekmatullah must not be released. Australia have communicated their position repeatedly and consistently and at the highest level to the Government of Afghanistan, which is solely responsible for his custody, and to the United States.

In February 2020, the United States and the Taliban agreed to a number of steps, including the release of Afghan Government and Taliban prisoners, as goodwill pre-conditions that oblige the Taliban to enter into intra-Afghan negotiations with the Government of Afghanistan.

Australia has worked hard with the United States, the Government of Afghanistan and other nations, including the British and French Governments, since February 2020 to keep Hekmatullah in detention, and to keep these six sensitive prisoners separate from the wider goodwill agreement. That agreement has already seen the release of some 5,000 Taliban-associated prisoners and detainees.

Australia is not the only country that objects to the release of this most dangerous group of prisoners. Other countries, including France, have joined calls for dangerous criminals not to be released.