Ukrainian military and separatist representatives exchanged dozens of prisoners under cover of darkness at a remote frontline location Saturday evening, kicking off a process intended to usher in peace to the conflict-ridden east. 139 Ukrainian troops and 52 rebels were exchanged, according to a separatist official overseeing the prisoner swap at a no man's land location near the village of Zholobok, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of the rebel-held city Luhansk.

Cuba has exchanged American citizen Alan Gross for three Cubans jailed in the United States. The prisoner swap is set to be the first step in a major overhaul of US-Cuba relations.

A new poll shows military veterans and their families say overwhelmingly that President Obama made the wrong call by trading five Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. And a plurality of all Americans agree.

A deal struck with Taliban militants in Afghanistan to free Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the only remaining U.S. prisoner of war, could revive efforts to broker peace talks between the insurgency and the Afghan government, officials in Kabul said.