Four Afghan health ministry officials seized by the Taliban have been freed in return for the remains of its slain commander, a Taliban spokesman said.
Shahabuddin Attal, who confirmed news of the release, also said that one the health workers was beheaded on Tuesday after the government delayed handing over Mullah Dadullah’s body.
Western and Afghan forces killed Dadullah in a clash last month, dealing a heavy blow to the Taliban.
His body was buried in an undisclosed location in the southern Kandahar province - the scene of some of the heaviest fighting this year.
The Taliban, who had kidnapped five health workers in March, demanded this week that Dadullah's remains be handed over to his family or else the hostages would be killed.
Meanwhile, a local police official confirmed Dadullah's remains had been handed over to his relatives late on Wednesday night in Kandahar.
Dadullah - nicknamed Afghanistan's Abu Musab al-Zarqawi after the slain al-Qaeda leader in Iraq - was the main architect of suicide bombings, kidnappings of foreigners and Afghans, beheadings and the rise of violence in the south.
An al-Qaeda leader threatened US-led forces and their Afghan allies with a deadly summer of attacks in revenge for Dadullah's killing.
Abu Yahya al-Libi issued the threat in a video statement posted on the internet on Wednesday.