20 Afghan militants lay down arms

Kabul, April 18 (IANS) Twenty Taliban militants, including a rebel commander, handed over their weapons Wednesday to the authorities in northeastern Afghanistan and joined a government-backed peace process, an official said.

The fighters led by their commander Mawlawi Fazlulllah have now joined the peace process, provincial government spokesman Abdul Marouf Rasikh told Xinhua.

Fazlulllah served as key Taliban commander in Badakhshan province, 300 km from Kabul.