American Woman Detained in Afghanistan Released by Taliban
An American woman, identified as Faye Hall, has been freed from captivity in Afghanistan, as confirmed by a social media post on Saturday from Zalmay Khalilzad, a former U.S. ambassador to both Afghanistan and Iraq. This release comes just days after the United States lifted multimillion-dollar bounties on three senior Taliban officials, marking a significant diplomatic development.
The social media post featured an image of Ms. Hall, smiling and seated between two men. Khalilzad stated, “She is now in the care of our friends, the Qataris in Kabul, and will soon be on her way home.” He also shared a video in which Ms. Hall expressed her gratitude to former President Donald Trump for her release, stating her support for him.
In a show of appreciation, President Trump reposted the video on his social media platform, Truth Social, expressing that he was “so honored” by her kind words.
Reports indicate that Ms. Hall was detained earlier in February alongside a British couple and an interpreter. The couple, Peter and Barbie Reynolds, both in their seventies, had been engaged in educational and training initiatives in Afghanistan for nearly eighteen years. Ms. Hall was reportedly a close friend of the couple.
As of now, the British couple has not been released, according to various media outlets. The daughter of the Reynolds family revealed a distressing account of the situation, mentioning that Afghan guards had to physically separate Ms. Hall from Ms. Reynolds during the removal process. The two women had made a pact that they would only accept their release if all four members of their group were freed together.
