News In Brief

Two Soviet soldiers captured in Afghanistan return home

Two Soviet soldiers captured by Afghan rebels and held in Switzerland for two years were returned to the Soviet Union Wednesday, the Swiss Foreign Office said. Under an accord negotiated by the Red Cross in Geneva with major Afghan resistance groups and the Soviet Union, Soviet soldiers captured by the Afghan rebels are held in neutral Switzerland for two years, or until the end of ''hostilities'' in Afghanistan.

The first three Soviets freed under the agreement were released in May, and two decided not to return to the Soviet Union. Five Soviets remain at a Swiss military detention center at Zuger Berg, south of Zurich.