The UN lifted sanctions against the former Afghan commander Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. Now he will be able to return to his country, reports the BBC. The Afghan authorities applied to the UN with that request under the agreement concluded with Hekmatyar and his armed group in September.

The agreement grants amnesty for Hekmatyar in exchange for support of the Afghan Constitution and a promise to disband the military wing of the organization. His group Hezb-e Islami is the second largest paramilitary formation in the country.

Hekmatyar was the minister of Afghanistan in 1993-93 and 1996. In 1996, he was forced to flee from Kabul, when the Taliban came to power. In 2003, the US declared him a terrorist. The location of Hekmatyar is unknown. He was not present at the signing of the agreement with the government in Kabul.