Afghanistan: Peter and Barbie Reynolds released after 7.5 months in Unlawful Detention by the Taliban
19 September 2025: Peter and Barbie Reynolds, two elderly British citizens who had been unlawfully detained by the Taliban since 1 February 2025, have been released and reunited with their family.
The family have released a statement here.
Doughty Street International’s Kate Gibson (Associate), Tatyana Eatwell and Nikila Kaushik acted for the family.
Background
Peter and Barbie Reynolds were arrested by the Taliban on 1 February 2025, as they disembarked from an internal flight from Kabul to Nayak, where their home in Afghanistan was based. At the time of their arrest, Mr and Mrs Reynolds had been living in Afghanistan for 18 years and were deeply connected to the community. Through their organisation Rebuild Consultants, they developed models for good practice for Afghanistan businesses and organisations through training programs in communication skills, conflict resolution, integrity, and social and emotional development. They also worked with mothers and children in Nayak, again teaching conflict resolution, communication skills, and parenting skills, with a view to promoting harmony within Afghan families. When the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, Peter and Barbie decided not to leave. They told their children that they “couldn’t leave the country, and the people they love, in their darkest hour”.
Mr and Mrs Reynolds were initially detained in Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul. They were subjected to a court process which appears to have concluded -- without charges and without any evidence being produced. A report prepared by the Afghan police, seen by Mr and Mrs Reynolds, stated that there was no evidence of their having engaged in wrongdoing. Nevertheless, they endured over three months of detention in Pul-e-Charkhi prison during which time they both experienced a rapid decline in their health.
An urgent appeal was first filed by the counsel team on behalf of the family with the United Nations ("UN") Special Rapporteur on torture in March 2025, when Mr and Mrs Reynolds were detained in Pul-e-Charkhi prison. The urgent appeal raised grave and increasing concerns for Mr and Mrs Reynolds’ health and well-being that had already at that time sharply declined since they were detained on 1 February 2025, raising a serious risk to life, and the lack of due process in their case.
On 17 April 2025, five UN experts sent an urgent communication to the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Muttaqi, calling for Peter and Barbie’s immediate release and access to urgent, adequate and comprehensive medical care and treatment, as appropriate, in a civilian hospital. In that communication, the UN experts expressed their concerns about Peter and Barbie’s rapidly declining health, “brought on by and/or exacerbated by the terrible conditions of their detention”, and warned that, given their advanced ages and medical health, “they may be at risk of irreversible harm, and even fatal consequences”.
On 18 May 2025, and without notice, Mr and Mrs Reynolds were transferred to the custody of Afghanistan’s GDI and told that they would be released in a matter of days. Instead, they were detained in GDI custody incommunicado in an underground cell, without access to sunlight for several weeks. Eight weeks later, they remain in GDI custody. No explanation has been provided for their transfer into GDI detention or for their ongoing detention. It remains the case that, since their arrest and despite thorough investigation by the Afghan police, no charges have been laid against them.
Following their transfer into GDI custody, both Mr and Mrs Reynolds’ health markedly worsened, and they were in urgent need of medical attention. In addition to being elderly, Mr Reynolds has a history of heart problems. A medical professional who conducted a remote assessment expressed concern that Mr Reynolds has suffered a stroke or a silent heart attack whilst in the Taliban’s custody. Mrs Reynolds is anaemic and has endured periods of frequently collapsing and being unable to stand.
After 8 weeks, following the intervention of the UN experts and engagement by the Qatari authorities with the Taliban authorities, Mr and Mrs Reynolds were transferred into better conditions, above ground, and allowed to call their family once every 10 days.
On Monday 21 July 2025, five UN human rights experts called for Mr and Mrs Reynolds’ release and for their immediate access to medical treatment.
Photo courtesy of the Reynolds Family
Notes:
Further background information is available at www.freepeterandbarbie.com.
- For press enquiries please contact k.gibson@doughtystreet.co.uk.
