RASC News Agency: Following the visit of a U.S. delegation to Afghanistan, the Taliban have released an American detainee. However, the fate of Mahmood Shah Habibi remains uncertain. Ahmad Shah Habibi, brother of the Afghanistani-American detainee, stated that his family had hoped Mahmood Shah Habibi would be freed alongside George Golzman, another American citizen recently released by the Taliban. He further revealed that the U.S. State Department informed him of Golzman’s release, assuring him that negotiations for his brother’s freedom were ongoing. However, there has been no concrete information about Habibi’s condition or whereabouts.
The U.S. government previously reported that Habibi disappeared in August 2022. At the time, he was employed by a telecommunications company in Afghanistan. According to reports, Taliban forces abducted him and his driver near his residence in Kabul, and since then, he has remained missing. Ahmad Shah Habibi emphasized that his family has repeatedly urged Taliban officials to allow them to contact his brother, but their pleas have gone unanswered. Reports suggest that the Taliban arbitrarily arrested and imprisoned Habibi under various pretexts. Some sources claim that he was transferred from a Kabul prison to Kandahar, heightening concerns about his safety. Despite mounting evidence, the Taliban have consistently denied holding him in custody.
Earlier reports indicated that Habibi had been relocated to a private detention facility under the direct supervision of Mullah Haibatullah in Kandahar. Allegedly, his transfer was made in response to U.S. pressure on the Taliban, ensuring he remained in a high-security Taliban-controlled compound. Notably, Mahmood Shah Habibi has been accused of involvement in the assassination of Ayman al-Zawahiri, the former leader of al-Qaeda.
