WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES – Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the US Department of State, expressed concern about the well-being of three US citizens who are “wrongfully” detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan.
During a press briefing on Thursday, August 8, Mr. Miller said that the US consistently raises the issue with Taliban authorities and will continue to work through diplomatic efforts to secure the release of the detained individuals.
“This weekend, on August 10th, marks two years since Mahmood Habibi and Ryan Corbett were taken captive in separate incidents in Afghanistan,” Miller said.
“We are deeply concerned about the well-being of Americans unjustly detained in Afghanistan – Mahmood, Ryan, and George Glezmann – and raise their detentions in every engagement we have with the Taliban,” he added.
He said that securing the release of Americans from Taliban detention will remain a top priority for the US government as it continues its efforts to bring them home.
This comes as the Biden administration faces widespread criticism from US lawmakers and the families of American citizens remaining in Taliban custody, who argue that it has not done enough to secure their release.
In June, the US House of Representatives passed Resolution H.Res. 965, which calls for the immediate release of Ryan Corbett, a US citizen who was “wrongfully detained” by the Taliban on August 10, 2022.
According to a family member, Ryan Corbett was arrested by Taliban agents, along with his German and two Afghan colleagues, during a business trip to Afghanistan.
Corbett and his family had lived in Afghanistan for years before being evacuated during the US military withdrawal in August 2021. He managed and supervised humanitarian projects for nongovernmental organizations, focusing on health and education.
Since Mr. Corbett’s detention, US lawmakers and his family have consistently urged the Biden administration to intensify efforts to secure his release, especially given his deteriorating health condition in Taliban custody.
However, earlier, Taliban chief spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said that they would consider releasing American citizens in exchange for the release of Taliban members held in the US and at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.
The ruling regime in Afghanistan has a history of holding Westerners hostage to gain political leverage and secure prisoner exchanges.
In September 2022, Bashir Noorzai, a Taliban financier and drug lord serving a life sentence, was released in exchange for the freedom of Mark Frerichs, a US citizen detained by the Taliban before the collapse of the Afghan republic government.
In 2014, the Taliban released Bowe Bergdahl, a U.S. Army sergeant who had been held captive for five years by the Haqqani network, a Taliban-affiliated group, in exchange for five Taliban leaders held at Guantánamo Bay.
