KABUL: Afghanistan`s Taliban government released 2,463 prisoners ahead of Eid, the supreme court said on Saturday.

The court said on X that `2,463 prisoners who were eligible for amnesty were released, while 3,152 others received sentence reductions` as per a decree by the Taliban supreme leader.

While the exact number of prisoners held by various security bodies in Afghanistan is unclear, the UN has warned of a growing prison population in the country.

A spokesman for the Office of Prison Administration claimed that between 11,000 and 12,000 convicted prisoners were in the authority`s custody. Around the same number are in detention awaiting trial, sentencing or appeal, he added.

The UN Mission to Afghanistan warned of high volumes of arrests and lengthy jail-time sentences putting `unsustainable pressure on prison facilities`. -AFP