LONDON: Qatar facilitated on Thursday the release of a US citizen in Afghanistan who had been in detention since December 2022.

George Glezmann is the third US citizen to be released by the Taliban government since January. The Taliban’s intelligence agency detained Glezmann, an airline mechanic from Atlanta, in December 2022.

He arrived in Doha on Thursday and will depart for his home country later, the Qatar News Agency reported. A date was not specified.

The Taliban government’s release of the detainee was a “gesture of goodwill,” reflecting its willingness to engage in dialogue with the international community, the QNA added.

The Taliban have been in control of Afghanistan since the summer of 2021, following the withdrawal of US and Western troops from the Central Asian country.

Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Al-Khulaifi said that cooperation with the mediation process involving the US and the “Afghan caretaker government” had led to the release of Glezmann.

He added that Qatar was dedicated to mediation efforts to find peaceful solutions to conflicts, disputes, and complex international issues.

Qatar has taken a leading role in mediating during some of the most contentious conflicts, including its recent efforts to help end the Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip and to facilitate the release of Israeli captives held by the militant group Hamas.