KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban on Tuesday released Dennis Coyle, a 64-year-old U.S. researcher from Colorado who had been held in Afghanistan for more than 14 months without formal charges, the group’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.
The ministry said in a statement that Coyle was released in Kabul as a humanitarian gesture, following a letter from his family to Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada requesting his pardon and release for Eid al-Fitr.
“The Supreme Court of the Islamic Emirate [Taliban] deemed his period of detention sufficient and decided on his release,” the statement read.
The announcement came after a meeting of Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, US former special envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad, the UAE ambassador to Kabul Saif Mohammed Al-Ketbi, and a member of Coyle’s family.
Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi described the decision as a humanitarian act and emphasized that the group does not detain foreign nationals for political purposes. He said such cases are handled through judicial processes related to alleged violations of Afghanistan’s laws, without specifying which laws Coyle was accused of violating.
He thanked the United Arab Emirates, particularly President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for helping facilitate the release, and also acknowledged Qatar for assisting in communication between the Taliban and Coyle’s family.
Coyle, a longtime resident of Afghanistan, had lived and worked in the country for over 20 years, focusing on research into local languages. He was detained from his apartment in Kabul in January 2025 and reportedly held in near-solitary conditions without formal charges.
The U.S. State Department designated Coyle as “wrongfully detained” in June 2025. Earlier this month, it labeled the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan a “state sponsor of wrongful detention,” accusing the group of detaining foreign nationals to gain political concessions or ransom.
U.S. officials say at least three Americans remain in Taliban custody, including Mahmood Shah Habibi, a dual U.S.-Afghan citizen who disappeared in 2022, about a week after a U.S. drone strike in Kabul killed Ayman al-Zawahri, the leader of al Qaeda. His whereabouts and condition remain unknown, and Washington has offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his recovery.
Senior U.S. officials have warned the Taliban of consequences if American detainees are not released. Adam Boehler, a senior U.S. official serving as special envoy for hostage response, said the group could face increased pressure, comparing potential measures to those taken against governments in Venezuela and Iran.
The Taliban have previously released U.S. detainees following negotiations with Washington. In January 2025, the group freed Americans Ryan Corbett and William McKenty in exchange for Taliban member Khan Mohammad, who had been serving a life sentence in the United States on narco-terrorism charges. In 2022, financier Bashir Noorzai was released from U.S. custody in return for American engineer Mark Frerichs.
The United States does not recognize the Taliban as Afghanistan’s legitimate government and conducts contacts indirectly, often through intermediaries such as Qatar and the UAE. Western governments, including the US, Britain, Canada, Australia, and Germany, continue to advise their citizens against all travel to Afghanistan, citing risks including militancy, kidnapping, and arbitrary detention.
