Afghanistan to Free Prisoners Accused of Killing Americans --- KABUL, Afghanistan — President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan on Thursday ordered the release of dozens of prisoners accused of having American blood on their hands, intensifying his showdown with Obama administration officials after weeks of confrontation and warnings that he risked losing American troop support.-- The move instantly cast more doubt on the prospects of a long-term security agreement between the two countries that has been held up for weeks, and threatened to plunge relations to a new state of crisis. American officials have said that releasing the prisoners without a trial would violate an agreement on detainees last year that was considered a cornerstone of the broader security deal now up in the air. -- “This is certainly not the end of the story,” said the aide, Aimal Faizi, in an interview on Thursday. “There are certainly others that we need keep looking at because they have been in some cases for years for unknown reasons.” -- As for the 72 detainees ordered freed on Thursday, “we have the right to release the men,” Mr. Faizi said. “The Americans know very well they do not have anything that is solid against these detainees.” He characterized some of the evidence as being nothing more than fingerprints on guns, noting that almost everyone in Afghanistan owns a gun. -- The announcement from Mr. Karzai’s office came late Thursday afternoon, the last day of the Afghan working week, and American officials said they were trying to get a full accounting of the decision and figure out how to react. - More, MATTHEW ROSENBERG, NYTimes, at: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/10/world/asia/afghanistan-to-free-prisoners.html?hp&_r=0