A British couple released after being detained for almost eight months by the Taliban emotionally found their daughter.
Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, who have lived in Afghanistan for almost two decades, were on the way back when they were arrested on February 1.
The couple was released Friday morning by Qatari mediation, then landed in Doha where they were adopted by their daughter. After the medical checks, they will go to the United Kingdom, despite their long-term home in the province of Bamiyan in Afghanistan.
The Taliban said that the pair had violated Afghan laws and had been released after legal proceedings – but never revealed the reason for their detention.
There were emotional scenes in Doha while the couple’s daughter, Sarah Entwistle, met her parents when they left the plane. They shared long hugs before walking together towards the airport building.
Shortly after landing in Doha, the couple was seen to greet Qatari and the British representatives.
Reynolds said it was “wonderful to be here”, and told the AFP news agency that she and her husband were Afghan citizens and are looking forward to going back to the country “if we can”.
She added that they had been treated “very well”.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer welcomed the “long -awaited news” and said in a statement that their release would be a huge relief for their four children.
He also paid tribute to the “vital role played by Qatar, including Amir, his Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani”.
Peter Reynolds tights his daughter Sarah [AFP via Getty Images]
Before her parents are shining, Ms. Entwistle told journalists that she had recently talked to them last Saturday and that they were “ready to go home”.
Earlier, the family said they were “overwhelmed with gratitude and relief” to the couple’s release.
They said it was “a moment of immense joy”, adding in a statement that they were “deeply grateful to all those who played a role in securing their release”.
“While the path of recovery will be long while our parents regain their health and spend time with their family, it is today a day of enormous joy and relief.”
The family paid a particular tribute to the “unwavering support” of Qatari mediators, as well as to the diplomatic efforts of the British government and to the support of the United States and the UN.
Peter and Barbie Reynolds were married in Kabul in 1970 and spent the last 18 years leading a charitable training program that had been approved by local Taliban officials when the armed group recovered power in 2021.
They were described by the family as having a life for life of Afghanistan, characterized by their decision to stay there after the authoritarian regime took control in August 2021, when many other Westerners left.
Their release follows months of public lobbying by their families, who described the heartbreaking conditions for their detention.
The couple’s son Jonathan Reynolds said in July that his father had suffered from serious convulsions and that his mother was “numb” for anemia and malnutrition.
“My father was chained to murderers and criminals,” he said at the time, adding that they had been detained at some point in a basement for six weeks without sun.
Reacting to the news of their release on Friday, Mr. Reynolds told BBC Breakfast: “I can’t wait to put my arms around them and hug them.”
Ms. Entwistle previously said that her father had undergone a mini-coup, while the UN warned that without medical care, the couple risked irreparable damage.
Barely six days ago, an American woman who was detained with them and later told the BBC that they were “literally dying” in prison and that “time is exhausted”.
Faye Hall, who was released two months after her detention, stressed that the health of the elderly had deteriorated quickly in prison.
A head of Qatari told the BBC that the couple had been transferred from Kabul central prison to a wider establishment with better conditions during the last stage of negotiations during his release.
The pair has a love for life of Afghanistan, say the family [Handout]
The official also said that the Qatari Embassy in Kabul had provided medication for them, access to a doctor and means to communicate with their family in prison.
Taliban officials argued that they had received adequate medical care in prison and their human rights were respected.
The United Kingdom does not recognize the Taliban government and closed its embassy in Kabul when the group returned to power.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs claims that support for British nationals in Afghanistan is therefore “severely limited” and advises all trips to the country.
A Taliban official said Peter and Barbie Reynolds had been given to the United Kingdom’s special envoy to Afghanistan, Richard Lindsay, who was represented with the couple on their flight to Qatar.
British Minister of the Middle East, Hamish Falconer, said he was relieved that the pair was now released, adding: “I can’t wait for them to be united with their family.”
He said that the United Kingdom had “worked intensively” to guarantee their release, while Qatar “had played an essential role in this case, for which I am extremely grateful”.
