Due to privacy, safety, and operational concerns, we have no further comment at this time,” Horne said. Through direct and indirect communications with the Taliban, we have urged the release of any and all individuals who are unjustly being held by the Taliban and their proxies. “It’s completely unacceptable for the Taliban to hold hostage human beings, and completely antithetical to their purported aspiration to be viewed as a legitimate actor on the world stage. Since the group swept back into power as the US military withdrew last August, it has been seeking recognition as Afghanistan’s legitimate government.Įmily Horne, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council, called the detentions “unacceptable” and said the US has been contact with the Taliban as it urges the group to release the Westerners.
The detentions also mark a sharp escalation of Taliban actions against Westerners living in Afghanistan and come at a delicate moment in US-Taliban relations. President Joe Biden withdrew all US troops from Afghanistan six months ago, which paved the way for the Taliban to take over the country. The detentions come at a delicate time for the Biden administration which faces a major foreign policy crisis in Ukraine. There is a high threat of COVID infection in the Afghan prison system. “He suffers from high blood pressure and needs medication. We urgently request that the Afghan authorities release Peter,” the family said. Before his arrest, he was working openly and had frequent meetings with senior Taliban officials.
“Peter’s family and friends believe that he may have been detained in error, as he was in Afghanistan to discuss investments in Afghanistan’s mining industry as well as conducting family business. The family also said that they believed his detention could have been an error and noted that he has health complications which make his detention more dangerous.
He is being held without charge, and with no freedom to contact his family or lawyers.” “He is a Muslim, knows Afghanistan better than most foreigners, is married to an Afghan (they have three daughters), and speaks both main languages. A British/German dual-national, Peter has been travelling to Afghanistan for more than forty years, as freelance cameraman, businessman and investor,” his family said in a statement. “Peter Jouvenal’s friends are deeply concerned for his safety following his detention by the authorities in Afghanistan in early December. Jouvenal’s detention was confirmed by his family and friends to CNN. The reason for each of the specific detentions is unclear, and they are not thought all to be related. North was in Afghanistan on assignment for the United Nations’ refugee agency (UNHCR). Antelava tweeted Sunday confirming North’s release. The wife of North, Natalia Antelava, had confirmed to CNN that her husband was detained. The former vice president of Afghanistan, Amrullah Saleh, tweeted that “nine” Westerners had been “kidnapped” by the Taliban, naming journalists Andrew North, formerly of the BBC who was in the country working for the United Nations, and Peter Jouvenal, who has worked with the BBC and CNN.
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