U.S. censures Taliban over detained Americans, warns of travel ban
Washington, March 10 – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday formally censured Taliban authorities in Afghanistan over the detention of American citizens, a step that could lead to restrictions on U.S. passport holders traveling to the country if detainees are not released.
Rubio said in a statement that Washington had designated Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government as a “state sponsor of wrongful detention,” calling on Kabul to free all U.S. citizens currently held there, including Mahmood Habibi and Dennis Coyle.
Rubio accused the Taliban of using detention tactics to extract concessions. “The Taliban continues to use terrorist tactics, kidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions,” he said, adding that the United States had concluded it was unsafe for Americans to travel to Afghanistan because of the risk of unjust detention.
Two sources familiar with the matter said Washington could restrict the use of U.S. passports for travel to Afghanistan if the Taliban authorities do not comply with U.S. demands.
Such restrictions currently apply only to travel to North Korea under U.S. regulations.
The United States is also seeking the return of the remains of Paul Overby, who was last seen near Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan in 2014, according to the sources.
Reuters was unable to reach Taliban officials for comment on the U.S. designation. The Taliban government has previously denied detaining Habibi, who formerly headed Afghanistan’s civil aviation authority.
The report that the United States was considering such a designation was first reported by CBS News earlier on Monday.
Rubio made a similar determination against Iran on Feb. 27 under an executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump in September. He warned that Washington could also restrict travel to Iran over the detention of U.S. citizens, although no such restrictions have been imposed.
The United States and Israel launched military operations against Iran the day after the designation was announced.
