A British couple who spent almost two decades running education programs in Afghanistan were detained by the Taliban earlier this month, their children said in interviews with a number of British news outlets.
The couple, Peter Reynolds and Barbie Reynolds, were arrested on Feb. 1 when returning to their home in the country’s Bamiyan province, according to accounts first given to The Sunday Times of London. The pair, who are in their 70s, have long run a program that offers education and training in Afghanistan.
After the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan in 2021 and the withdrawal of Western troops from the country, Mr. Reynolds and Ms. Reynolds decided to stay despite the potential risk, according to one of their four children.
“They were just trying to help the country they loved,” Sarah Entwistle, the couple’s eldest daughter, told The Sunday Times.
When the Taliban came to power, it imposed an Islamic republic government and rolled back rights for women and other groups, including restricting access to education for women after the sixth grade. Women are also banned from most workplaces, and public spaces like parks, gyms and salons under Taliban law.
Ms. Entwistle told the BBC that she and her siblings were able to message their parents for a few days after their arrest. Her parents told them they were being held by the interior ministry but were fine, she said. But she added that she has not heard from them in over two weeks and said she feared for their well-being because of their age and because her father is currently taking medication, after recently suffering from a stroke.
Mr. Reynolds, 79, and Ms. Reynolds, 75, were working on a number of educational projects as part of Rebuild, a research and training company that they founded in 2009. One program helped to teach parenting skills to mothers, according to their daughter. “The idea they are being held because they were teaching mothers with children is outrageous,” Ms. Entwistle told The Sunday Times.
The couple’s connection to Afghanistan extends back to their youth. According to their development company’s website, they married there more than 50 years ago. Rebuild is based in Kabul, but has programs across the country.
“Under the new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Rebuild has grown and developed new enterprises with new staff, eager to help and support their country’s future,” the company website reads. In a video on the website, published months after the Taliban took control, Mr. Reynolds explains the practical training they offer. Footage shows women in head scarves and men taking part in courses, including “communication skills” and management training. In other clips, children are shown apparently learning the alphabet.
The couple’s children have written to the Taliban, in a letter shared with The Associated Press, urging them to release Mr. and Ms. Reynolds.
“They have always been open about their presence and their work, diligently respecting and obeying the laws as they change,” their children wrote. “They have chosen Afghanistan as their home, rather than with family in England, and they wish to spend the rest of their lives in Afghanistan.”
In their letter, the family said that the Taliban were aware of the couple’s work and had previously supported their training efforts.
“We kindly ask for the release of our father and mother so they can return to their work in teaching, training and serving Afghanistan, which you have previously supported.”
The Taliban government and local officials in Bamiyan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesperson for Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed in an emailed statement that it is “supporting the family of two British nationals who are detained in Afghanistan,” but declined to provide further details.
The foreign office advises against all travel to Afghanistan, pointing to a “heightened risk of British nationals being detained” and to the British government’s “extremely limited” ability to help those in need of consular support, as it has no embassy or diplomatic relationship with the Taliban.
The United States also has no diplomatic representatives in the country and has likewise warned against travel to Afghanistan by American citizens. A number of Westerners have been detained in the country since the Taliban seized control, and two Americans were freed in a prisoner swap in January.
Safiullah Padshah contributed reporting
