British Couple's Release from Taliban Detention Sparks Joy and Relief

Tue Oct 14 2025 12:23:15 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

The son of Peter and Barbie Reynolds expresses overwhelming gratitude as his parents return to the UK after nearly eight months of detention by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Their reunion in Qatar brings emotional scenes as the family looks towards the future amid ongoing ties to Afghanistan.

Peter and Barbie Reynolds, a British couple who spent nearly eight months in Taliban detention, have been released and are set to return to the UK, much to the delight of their son Jonathan. Despite their ordeal, the couple remains committed to Afghanistan and their charitable work there. Prime Minister Keir Starmer praises Qatar’s role in securing their release while their family’s efforts to highlight their conditions proved successful.

The son of an British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly eight months has said he is overwhelmed by their release.

Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, who lived in Afghanistan for nearly two decades, are due to fly to the UK on Saturday after being reunited with their daughter in Qatar.

Jonathan Reynolds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that he was ecstatic and massively grateful to those who were involved in securing their release.

The Taliban, who detained the couple on their way home on 1 February, said the pair had broken Afghan laws and were released after judicial proceedings - but the Islamist group has never disclosed a reason for their detention.

There were emotional scenes on Friday as the couple's daughter, Sarah Entwistle, met her parents as they stepped off the plane in Doha.

We are looking forward to returning to Afghanistan if we can. We are Afghan citizens, Barbie told Agence France-Presse at Kabul airport after Qatar-brokered negotiations for their release.

Their son Jonathan echoed those hopes, saying their desire would be to carry on living there and to do the work they were doing.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer praised the vital role played by Qatar in securing their release.

Peter and Barbie Reynolds married in Kabul in 1970 and spent the past 18 years running a charitable training programme that had been approved by local Taliban officials when the armed group reclaimed power in 2021.

The couple's release follows months of public lobbying by their family, who have described the harrowing conditions of their detention. Jonathan said in July that his father had been suffering serious convulsions and his mother was numb from anaemia and malnutrition.

A Qatari official told the BBC the couple were moved from Kabul's central prison to a larger facility with better conditions during the final stage of negotiations over their release. Taliban officials maintained they received adequate medical care during their detention and that their human rights were respected.

The couple were receiving medical checks in the Qatari capital, Doha, before leaving for London. They will arrive on a commercial flight on Saturday morning, AFP reports. The UK does not recognise the Taliban government and closed its embassy in Kabul when the group returned to power.