The Taliban junta in Afghanistan on Tuesday released U.S. citizen Dennis Coyle after 14 months in captivity. He arrived in San Antonio, Texas, on Wednesday morning.
Coyle, 64, is an academic from Colorado who had been working on linguistic research in Afghanistan for more than 20 years. He left Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in August 2021, but returned about 18 months later after receiving assurances from the Taliban that it supported his work.
Coyle was forcibly arrested at his apartment in Kabul and detained without charges by the Taliban General Directorate of Intelligence in January 2025, six days after the Taliban released another American it had been holding, Ryan Corbett.
According to his family, Coyle was held in “near-solitary conditions” for the next 14 months, without ever being charged with a crime. He was denied adequate medical care and was only allowed to speak with his family under supervision. The regime would only vaguely indicate that he was detained for “violations of Afghanistan’s applicable laws.”
The Taliban Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Coyle was released “based on humanitarian sympathy and goodwill, and believes that such steps can further strengthen the atmosphere of trust between countries.”
According to the foreign ministry, Coyle was released on the order of Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada in response to a plea for clemency from his mother on the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr, the conclusion of the Ramadan holiday month.
“The esteemed authority of the Supreme Court deemed his prior imprisonment sufficient, and today he was handed over to his family in Kabul,” the ministry said.
The Taliban added its hope that “both countries will find solutions to the remaining problems through understanding and constructive dialogue in the future.”
Former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad went to Kabul to facilitate Coyle’s release. He called it a “good decision” by the Taliban and a “very positive development.”
The Coyle family thanked President Donald Trump and members of his administration for bringing Dennis home.
“Today, our hearts are filled with overwhelming gratitude and praise to God for sustaining Dennis’ life and bringing him back home after what has been the most challenging and uncertain 421 days of our lives,” the family said in a statement.
“To our friends, neighbors, and everyone who prayed for Dennis’ safe return, called or wrote your Member of Congress, or fueled our advocacy in countless other ways, your support has carried us through the darkest moments. You reminded us that hope endures, even in the face of despair,” they said.
Coyle said during his flight back to America that the people of Afghanistan are not all “evil” or “wicked.”
“Many people just doing their best to survive, looking for hope,” he said.
Coyle described himself as a proud American, but added that “God has given me a love for Afghans, also.”
“While there’s much joy coming home, much of my life, the last twenty years, has been invested there. And there’s some, what’s the right word, regret not, but even a hint of sadness that way, with much, of course, joy,” he reflected.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that Coyle “joins over 100 Americans who have been freed in the past 15 months under his second term in office.”
“We thank the United Arab Emirates for its support in securing Dennis’ release. We also appreciate Qatar’s continued support and advocacy for Americans unjustly detained in Afghanistan,” Rubio said.
“While this is a positive step by the Taliban, more work needs to be done. We are still seeking the immediate return of Mahmood Habibi, Paul Overby, and all other unjustly detained Americans. The Taliban must end their practice of hostage diplomacy,” he added.
Mahmood Shah Habibi is a U.S.-Afghan dual citizen and former director of civil aviation for Afghanistan who disappeared in 2022, shortly after a U.S. drone strike killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul. The U.S. says it has evidence he was abducted by the Taliban’s intelligence service, much as Coyle was. The Taliban denies holding Habibi prisoner.
Paul Overby is an American author who disappeared in Khost City, Afghanistan, in May 2014 while conducting research for a new book. He was last heard suggesting that he might visit the Pakistani tribal region to continue his research.
Rubio designated Afghanistan as a State Sponsor of Wrongful Detention on March 9, because the Taliban continued to “use terrorist tactics, kidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions.”
“It is not safe for Americans to travel to Afghanistan because the Taliban continues to unjustly detain our fellow Americans and other foreign nationals,” he said.
