Qatar to extend restrictions on ex-Taliban detainees: U.S. official

[June 01, 2015]  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Qatar has agreed to extend monitoring and travel restrictions on five Taliban detainees who were freed from the Guantanamo Bay U.S. detention camp last year in exchange for a U.S. soldier, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Sunday.

The official, who asked not to be identified, said the restrictions would continue while Washington was in discussions with Qatar about ensuring the five posed no threat to U.S. security.

Qatar took in the men as part of a deal to free U.S. Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, who had been captured by militants in Afghanistan. A Qatari agreement on supervision of the ex-detainees had been due to expire.

Qatar "has agreed to maintain the current restrictive conditions on these individuals as we continue these discussions," the official said. "All five remain in Qatar, where they remain subject to extensive monitoring as well as travel restrictions."

(Reporting by Frances Kerry; Editing by Peter Cooney)

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