A British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly eight months have arrived back in the UK after being released.
Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, who lived in Afghanistan for nearly two decades, landed at Heathrow Airport, on a flight from Doha.
They were reunited with their daughter in Qatar on Friday. Their son Jonathan Reynolds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that he was ecstatic and massively grateful to those who were involved in securing their release.
The Taliban, who detained the couple on 1 February, said the pair had broken Afghan laws and were released after judicial proceedings - but the Islamist group has never disclosed a reason for their detention.
Peter and Barbie Reynolds married in Kabul in 1970 and spent the past 18 years running a charitable training programme that had been approved by local Taliban officials when the armed group reclaimed power in 2021.
There were emotional scenes on Friday as the couple's daughter, Sarah Entwistle, met her parents as they stepped off the plane in Doha.
We are looking forward to returning to Afghanistan if we can. We are Afghan citizens, Barbie told Agence France-Presse at Kabul airport after Qatar-brokered negotiations for their release.
Their son Jonathan echoed those hopes, saying their desire would be to carry on living there and to do the work they were doing.
They have not just a heart for the people of Afghanistan, but they have strategy as well, and the work they've been doing has been very fruitful and has a massively positive impact, Jonathan told the BBC.
Since 2009 the couple have been running training projects in Kabul and Bamiyan, including educational initiatives for women and children that had been approved by local authorities, despite the restrictive environment.
The couple's release followed months of public lobbying by their family, revealing the harrowing conditions they faced in detention. Jonathan mentioned that his father had suffered serious convulsions during this time, while his mother endured severe anemia and malnutrition.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer praised the vital role played by Qatar in facilitating their release. In the final stage of negotiations, the couple was moved to a facility with better conditions.
The couple received medical checks in Doha before returning home. The UK government does not recognize the Taliban and has limited support for British nationals in Afghanistan.
