According to the source, Faye Hall was released Thursday “following a court order and with logistical support from Qatar,” which has been mediating on behalf of the United States
Faye Hall, an American woman detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan since February, has been released and is reported to be in “good health,” CNN reported, citing a source statement.
Hall was detained for allegedly operating a drone without authorization.
According to the source, Faye Hall was released Thursday “following a court order and with logistical support from Qatar,” which has been mediating on behalf of the United States.
The source further added, “Hall was received at the Qatari Embassy in Kabul and has been confirmed in good health after undergoing a series of medical checks. Arrangements are currently underway for her return to the United States.”
Sharing a picture of Hall on X, Zalmay Khalilzad, the US’ former ambassador to Afghanistan, wrote, “American citizen Faye Hall, just released by the Taliban, is now in the care of our friends, the Qataris in Kabul, and will soon be on her way home. Thank you, #Qatar, for your ongoing and steadfast partnership.”
This development comes after a diplomatic push by Trump envoy Adam Boehler and Khalilzad, who traveled to Kabul to secure the release of American citizen George Glezmann, which was also mediated by the Qataris.
According to CNN, the US does not have a diplomatic presence in Afghanistan, having closed its embassy there after the Taliban takeover in August 2022. Instead, Qatar represents the US in Afghanistan, acting as its “protective power.”
On Saturday, President Donald Trump shared a video on social media of Hall, who expressed her gratitude and said she was “so glad” he was in office.
“Thank you for bringing me home. I’ve never been so proud to be an American citizen,” Hall said in the video posted by Trump.
“Thank you, Faye — So honored by your words!” Trump’s post read.
Those were the highest-level direct talks between the two countries since President Trump’s inauguration, though the new American administration’s policy plans for the Taliban and Afghanistan remain unclear.
When he was last in power, Trump negotiated the end of the US war in Afghanistan by agreeing to a 14-month deadline to withdraw US troops and allied forces.
The agreement was criticised, as it left out the Western-backed and democratically-elected Afghan government, which was quickly toppled by Taliban forces during the US’s disastrous withdrawal in 2021.
Trump has blamed his predecessor, Joe Biden, for the chaotic exit, which included a bombing at Kabul airport. The attack killed at least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 US soldiers.
Barbie and Peter Reynolds remain in detention. The couple met in England, married in Kabul in 1970 and have run educational programmes in the region for years.
When the Taliban took back control of Afghanistan, the Reynolds were among the few westerners who decided to stay.
Their daughter, Sarah Entwistle, told the Sunday Times: “They said they could not leave when Afghans were in their hour of need.” She said her parents were “meticulous about keeping by the rules even as they kept changing”.
Hall was arrested while travelling with the couple to their home in central Bamyan province. Entwistle has said that her 79-year-old father is suffering severe medical issues while imprisoned, including a chest infection, eye infections and digestive issues. She has alleged that he has also been beaten since being detained.
“Our desperate appeal to the Taliban is that they release them to their home, where they have the medication he needs to survive,” she told the Sunday Times.
