Taliban faction frees American woman, husband, and children after 5 years

(Image credit: AP Photo/Bill Gorman, File)

published 12 October 2017

A Taliban affiliate has freed an American woman, her three children, and her Canadian husband after the family spent five years as hostages, The New York Times reports. "In 2012, Caitlan Coleman, an American citizen, and her husband, Joshua Boyle, a Canadian citizen, were taken captive and held hostage by the Haqqani network," the White House said in a statement Thursday. "Ms. Coleman gave birth to the couple's three children while they were in captivity. Yesterday, the United States government, working in conjunction with the Government of Pakistan, secured the release of the Boyle-Coleman family from captivity in Pakistan."

Coleman and Boyle were kidnapped while backpacking near Kabul. Over the years, the Haqqani network has threatened to kill the family if its own hostages weren't released. In a 2016 video, Coleman said the terrorists "threaten to retaliate against our family. Their group will do us harm and punish us. So we ask that you are merciful to their people and, God willing, they will release us."

Trump teased the release of the family in Pennsylvania on Wednesday, Fox News reports. "Something happened today, where a country that totally disrespected us called with some very, very important news," he said. "And one of my generals came in. They said, 'You know, I have to tell you, a year ago they would've never done that.' It was a great sign of respect. You'll probably be hearing about it over the next few days. But this is a country that did not respect us. This is a country that respects us now. The world is starting to respect us again, believe me."