Washington – An American man who was kidnapped more than two years ago while traveling through Afghanistan as a tourist has been released by the Taliban in an agreement with the Trump administration that Qatar negotiators helped the runners, the State Department said Thursday.
George Glezmann, a mechanic from the Atlanta airline, is The third American detainee to be launched by the Taliban since January. He was seized for Taliban intelligence services in December 2022 and was appointed by the United States government as unfairly detained the following year.
In a statement, the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said that Glezmann was back to the United States to meet with his wife, Aleksandra. He also praised Qatar for “firm commitment and diplomatic efforts” that said they were “instrumental in ensuring George’s liberation.”
“George’s launch is a positive and constructive step. It is also a reminder that other Americans are still being held in Afghanistan. President Trump will continue his tireless work to free all Americans detained unfairly detained worldwide,” said Rubio.
Glezmann was being accompanied to the United States, through the capital of Qatar, Doha, by Adam Boehler, who has been handling hostages for the administration of President Donald Trump. Qatar has organized negotiations between the United States and the Taliban over the years.
The launch of Glezmann is part of what the Taliban have previously described as the “normalization” of ties between the United States and Afghanistan. The American chaotic withdrawal of Afghanistan In 2021. Most countries still do not recognize the Taliban rule.
The launch of Glezmann follows a separate agreement, organized in the last days of the Biden Administration and also mediated by the Qatar, which secured the releases of Ryan Corbett and William McKenty. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Taliban in Kabul said at that time that these two American citizens had been exchanged by Khan Mohammed, who was sentenced to two terms of life imprisonment in 2008 after being convicted under the laws of American drug trafficking.
Unlike that agreement, the United States did not give up any prisoner to ensure the release of Glezmann, which was made as a gesture of good will, according to an informed officer on the matter that insisted on anonymity due to the sensitivity of the negotiations.
The Taliban revealed early on Thursday that Boehler had gathered in hostage matters with a delegation that included the Afghan Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi.
President Joe Biden contemplated himself before leaving office An earlier proposal That would have involved the release of Glezmann and other Americans for Muhammad Rahim, one of the remaining detainees in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But Biden told families during a call in January that he would not support Rahim’s trade unless the Taliban releases Afghan businessmen, Mahmood Habibi.
American officials believe that Taliban are holding Habibi, but the Taliban have denied it.
___
Associated Press Victoria Eastwood writers in Cairo and Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
