The children of an elderly couple held by the Taliban in Afghanistan have called on the group to release them before they “die in custody“, PA Media/DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
Barbie Reynolds, 76, and her husband Peter, 80, were arrested while travelling home in Bamyan province, central Afghanistan, in February.
They have been held without charge for five and a half months and were separated and held in a maximum security prison until eight weeks ago.
Their four children, who live in the US and UK, said they were worried about their parents both of whom are in poor health.
“This is another urgent call to the Taliban to release our parents before it is too late and they die in custody. "They have dedicated their lives to the Afghan people for the past 18 years," they said.
The siblings revealed that they had sent two private letters to the Taliban leadership and made public calls for the release of their parents, who for 18 years ran teacher training programs in the country and remained there even after the Taliban took power in 2021.
After taking power, the Taliban imposed a ban on women working and on education for girls over the age of 12.
The Reynolds children said that they last spoke to their parents five weeks ago, when their mother said that their father's health was rapidly deteriorating.