After five years in captivity, an American woman, her Canadian husband and three children have been freed from militant forces in Afghanistan, said President Trump on Thursday.
The couple, Caitlan Coleman, 31 and Joshua Boyle, 33, were kidnapped in 2012 while traveling as tourists in Afghanistan by the Taliban-allied Haqqani network. Coleman was pregnant when kidnapped and gave birth during captivity.
The release was announced in a statement by the Pakistani Army and was later confirmed by U.S. officials.
“This is a positive moment for our country’s relationship with Pakistan,” Trump said in a statement. “The Pakistani government’s cooperation is a sign that it is honouring America’s wishes for it to do more to provide security in the region. We hope to see this type of cooperation and teamwork in helping secure the release of remaining hostages and in our future joint counterterrorism operations.”
The couple had been traveling in the Wardak province, a militant base near Kabul before their capture. According to the New York Times, Boyle was interested in the issue of terrorism, being previously married to the eldest daughter of Omar Khadr, a former war-time detainee who was held at Guantánamo.
Back in 2014, Pakistani officials captured one of the Haqqani network’s commanders, Anas Haqqani. The militant group demanded Haqqani’s freedom in exchange for the family’s release. If Haqqani was executed, they said, the couple and children were to be killed.
The family’s freedom was a victory for State Department officials and Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, an FBI group created under Obama’s administration to increase the government’s efforts to free hostages and report information to their families.
According to the Pakistani Army’s statement, U.S. forces were tracking the couple’s location and shared intel with Pakistan when the family was moved to the country.
“The success underscores the importance of timely intelligence sharing and Pakistan’s continued commitment towards fighting this menace through cooperation between two forces against a common enemy,” the statement said.
A Pakistani military official told CNN that the Pakistani government received news from the U.S. of the family’s movements at 4:30 p.m. Pakistani time. The rescue was then launched 3 hours later at 7:30 p.m.
The official said that the Pakistani intelligence agents worked together with the Pakistani Army to secure the perimeter. As the family was being moved, the operation took place in northwestern Pakistan at the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. According to the official, the operation involved a shootout with the kidnappers, ending with some enemy arrests and deaths.
After the family was recovered, they were taken to the town of Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and later transferred to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, to meet with U.S. officials. Arrangements were made for the family to leave Afghanistan, yet Boyle had refused to board, fearful that he would be arrested due to his ties with Khadr.
“Throughout the captivity of Boyle and Coleman, the Department focused its efforts on supporting their recovery and identifying and holding accountable those responsible for taking them hostage,” said a Department of Justice spokesman Wyn Hornbuckle to CNN. “Coleman and Boyle are not charged with any federal crime and, as such, we do not seek their arrest.”
According to a senior U.S. official who talked to CNN, there are some questions concerning Boyle’s past.
Canada was also engaged with the governments of the U.S., Pakistan and Afghanistan, thanking them Thursday for the family’s rescue.
“Joshua, Caitlan, their children and the Boyle and Coleman families have endured a horrible ordeal over the past five years,” said Canada’s foreign minister, Chrystia Freeland. “We stand ready to support them as they begin their healing journey.”
