KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Taliban authorities in central Bamyan province have detained three foreign nationals, including two women, along with their local interpreter and driver, according to sources in the region.
The detention occurred on Saturday, February 1, shortly after the group landed in Yakawlang district of Bamyan. They were subsequently transferred to the province’s security command headquarters, sources told KabulNow.
Documents obtained by KabulNow indicate that one of the detainees holds dual citizenship of China and the United States, while the other two, a married couple, are Singaporean and Sri Lankan nationals.
The couple also possesses Afghanistan national ID cards and has reportedly been living in the area for the past three years. The third woman was visiting them. According to documents, the couple identified themselves as businesspersons.
The reason for their detention remains unclear, and Taliban authorities have yet to comment on the matter.
Since returning to power, the Taliban have detained several foreign nationals across Afghanistan. In some cases, they have held foreign citizens, particularly those from Western countries, to gain political leverage or secure prisoner exchanges.
Last month, the Taliban released two U.S. citizens in exchange for one of their members, who had been serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison on narco-terrorism charges. However, reports indicate that two other U.S. citizens remain in Taliban custody.
Prisoner swaps have taken place before. In September 2022, the Taliban secured the release of Bashir Noorzai, a financier and drug trafficker serving a life sentence in the U.S., in exchange for Mark Frerichs, an American engineer abducted before the fall of the Afghan republic government.
In recent years, several countries, including the U.S., Canada, the UK, Germany, Russia, and Australia, have warned their citizens against traveling to Afghanistan under Taliban rule, citing security threats such as terrorism, wrongful detention, kidnapping, and other criminal activities.
