By KEVIN ADJEI-DARKO, SENIOR FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:58 BST, 23 July 2025 | Updated: 17:00 BST, 23 July 2025
An elderly British couple held in Afghanistan for over five months are reportedly 'receiving medical care' and are 'in occasional contact with their families'. The update on the couple was given by the Taliban's foreign minister after UN experts warned that Peter, 80, and Barbie Reynolds, 75, could die in custody. They were arrested on February 1 in Bamiyan province along with an Afghan interpreter and their Chinese-American friend Faye Hall, who has since been released. The pair, who have lived in Afghanistan for 18 years and were married in Kabul in 1970, ran a training organisation offering education programmes, including parenting skills courses. At a press conference in Kabul, the minister said: 'All their human rights are being respected. They are being provided with medical care. 'They are in occasional contact with their families.' He added that 'efforts are underway to secure their release, but the process is not complete'. The statement is similar to what was said in April when questions about their release arose. In the UN special rapporteur, Alice Edwards' warning, she said their conditions could lead to 'rapid deterioration in mental and physical health. The Taliban government claims that Peter and Barbara Reynolds are receiving medical care' and are 'in occasional contact with their familiesShe also cautioned that they face 'irreparable harm or even death'. Although no charges have been levelled against the pair, they were held in a maximum security prison for several months. They were also detained in underground cells without daylight. They were eventually moved to the Taliban's intelligence headquarters in Kabul. The UN report went into details about Peter's worsening health - he suffers from tremors, eye infections, and needs heart medication after he suffered a stroke in 2023. Barbie is also said to be 'weak and fragile'. She is also anaemic and has numbness in her feet. Their children, who live in the UK and the US, have repeatedly pleaded for their parents' release, saying they fear they may 'die in custody'. Although officials from the UK Foreign Office were allowed to perform a welfare visit, the promise of the couple's quick release by the Taliban government has not materialised. Peter suffers from tremors, eye infections, and needs heart medication after he suffered a stroke in 2023, while Barbara has been described as 'weak and fragile'Taliban sources have sometimes described their arrest as a 'misunderstanding' and blamed paperwork issues for their incarceration. However, people in the know have told AFP that authorities had concerns that they owned 'non-Islamic' books. In a rare phone call from prison, Peter, who has both Afghan and British citizenship, said his stay in prison was 'the nearest thing to hell'. He claimed he was locked up alongside murderers and was limited to a single meagre daily meal of bread and chickpeas. Peter also said he sleeps on a mattress on the floor, a situation which is reportedly still happening at his current location.
