Kabul:
The Taliban internal ministry said on Thursday that the case against a detained British couple was not “serious” and the authorities hoped that it would be “resolved” soon “, as a source said that the diplomatic missions were working for their release.
Peter and Barbie Reynolds, who are in their 70s, were detained in February with the Chinese-American friend Fay Hall and his Afghan translator, as he traveled to his home in Central Bamiyan province.
The hall, an American citizen, was released in late March after a rare journey by US authorities for Kabul and removing millions of dollars on several Taliban leaders.
“Their case is nothing serious,” Abdul Matin Kani, spokesman of the internal ministry, told AFP, saying that he would be “treated according to Sharia”, or Islamic law.
“We hope that their case will be resolved soon, nothing is bigger to worry about their case.”
Ministry of Justice spokesperson will not share any information about Britain when contacted by the AFP on Wednesday and the Taliban authorities have not expanded the reasons for their arrest.
A source familiar with the couple’s case told AFP that it was “more complex” than the hall.
“Many (non-Islamic) religious books were found in his house, which is currently the remaining allegations being investigated by the Taliban courts,” the source said.
“Diplomatic engagement of various missions on the ground continues to intensify the case.”
Reynolds, who married in Kabul in 1970, conducted school training programs in South Asian country for 18 years.
After the Taliban acquisition in 2021, when the British Embassy withdrew their employees, both of them remained in Afghanistan, both confirmed the British people, both organized Afghan Passport and National ID.
His daughter has expressed serious apprehension for her health and treatment in custody, shared a call recorded with Britain’s The Sunday Times that has described “shocking” conditions and limited food by Peter Reynolds.
Taliban authorities have imposed extensive restrictions in accordance with the strict interpretation of Islamic law.
In 2023, an American woman was one of more than a dozen employees of an international NGO, arrested by Taliban authorities, who was accused of doing Christian missionaries.
(This story is not edited by NDTV employees and auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)