RASC News Agency: Motley Rice, one of the largest litigation firms in the United States, has revealed that the Coleman family held captive by the Taliban for five years has initiated legal action against the Haqqani Network and the Taliban in an American court. In a statement, the firm explained that the family seeks to hold these groups accountable as “foreign terrorist organizations” that inflicted “unimaginable and relentless” suffering upon them throughout their captivity.
The family’s ordeal began in 2012, when Joshua Coleman and his wife, Caitlan, were abducted by the Taliban while traveling in Afghanistan. At the time, Caitlan was approximately seven months pregnant. Their imprisonment stretched nearly five years until 2017, when Pakistani forces, following a skirmish near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, eventually liberated them. Filed on the Colemans’ behalf by Motley Rice in a Pennsylvania court, the lawsuit draws on the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act to levy accusations of assault, battery, unlawful detention, and intentional infliction of severe emotional distress by the Taliban and Haqqani Network.
“Caitlan’s life will never be as it once was,” said Michael Elsner, an attorney with Motley Rice. “Every day, she confronts the physical and psychological toll of her captivity. Even more distressing, her children born into this nightmare will carry its shadow throughout their lives. The horrors they endured at the hands of the Haqqani Network and Taliban defy acceptable human treatment. We are unwavering in our commitment to holding these groups accountable for their crimes.”
Another Motley Rice attorney, Annie Cuba, remarked, “Caitlan has overcome extreme adversity. Today, she channels her resilience into helping others and continuing the fight for her family.” The lawsuit details the family’s five years of captivity from October 10, 2012, to October 11, 2017 during which they lived under harsh conditions and constant fear. Caitlan gave birth to three children and endured a forced miscarriage during this time. The family claims they were subjected to severe isolation, physical and psychological abuse, and sustained terror. The suit also includes representation for Caitlan’s mother, Linda Coleman, who tirelessly advocated for the safe return of her daughter and grandchildren.
Linda Coleman shared, “There’s no way to express the depth of my gratitude for the safe return of my daughter and grandchildren. Those years of unending fear and anguish haunted my family every day.” The lawsuit asserts that the Haqqani Network and Taliban exploited the family’s captivity to advance their “terrorist” agenda, leveraging them to coerce countries such as the United States, Canada, and Afghanistan into prisoner exchanges and political concessions.
In her statement, Caitlan Coleman declared, “I am pursuing justice for the years stolen from me and my children under the control of the Haqqani Network and the Taliban. My three children were born into captivity; their lives began within that ordeal. It is crucial for me to take a stand and make clear to terrorist organizations that the kidnapping of American citizens is an act of terror that must not go unpunished.”
