When Faye Hall, an American aid worker, stepped out of an Afghan prison after two harrowing months earlier this year, she left behind two people she considered family: Peter and Barbie Reynolds, a British couple who have called Afghanistan home for nearly two decades. Their story, now making headlines across the world, is one of devotion, uncertainty, and a desperate race against time as their health rapidly deteriorates behind bars under Taliban rule.
The ordeal began on February 1, 2025, when Hall, 80-year-old Peter Reynolds, and 76-year-old Barbie Reynolds were stopped at a checkpoint after flying from Kabul to Bamiyan Province on a privately chartered plane. According to BBC reporting, the group—which also included an interpreter—was returning to the province where the Reynolds had lived and worked for years, running school training and charity programs that had been approved by the Taliban after their 2021 return to power. The couple, who married in Kabul in 1970, had even acquired Afghan citizenship as a testament to their commitment to the country.
But that February day marked the beginning of a nightmare. The group was detained without explanation and spent days being shuttled between police stations and prisons. Hall described the conditions as bleak and frightening. "It's not a healthy environment and we were the only foreigners there," she told the BBC in her first interview since her release. She recalled cramped cells in a maximum security prison surrounded by barbed wire, with guards toting machine guns. The floor was carpeted, but there were no beds—just worn mats to sleep on. The number of detainees in their cell fluctuated from two to seven, and the basic amenities offered little comfort. "There is air conditioning or heater at the time, but it just fluctuates," Hall explained.
After two months, Hall was released and returned home, but Peter and Barbie Reynolds remained imprisoned. As of September 13, 2025, they still do not know why they are being held, despite having appeared in court four times. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is supporting the couple's family, but with the UK embassy in Kabul shuttered since the Taliban takeover, direct assistance is severely limited. The FCDO has met with the family to discuss the case, but the lack of diplomatic presence in Afghanistan makes progress slow and uncertain.
The couple's son has voiced his deepest fears to the BBC, saying he worries his parents will die in prison. His concerns are echoed by Hall, who has witnessed firsthand the toll that imprisonment has taken on their health. "We just have these elderly people, they're literally dying, and time is running out," she said, her voice breaking. Hall described how Barbie, once vibrant and active, suddenly became unable to stand or walk, with no diagnosis for her condition. "She had always walked and is a very active person," Hall said. "But then all of a sudden, one day, she just couldn't walk, and she couldn't get up. And we don't know what's wrong with her. Her legs were just giving out so and there's no diagnosis and it's not a precondition."
Peter's situation is equally dire. He requires daily medication following heart surgery and cancer treatment, which the Qatari government has been providing. Yet, Hall warned that his health is "just deteriorating," made worse by being separated from Barbie. "I think his conditions were not as good, and being separate from Barbie, he's definitely getting much, much weaker," Hall noted. The couple's son has reported that Peter has suffered serious convulsions, while Barbie is "numb" from anaemia and malnutrition. The physical decline is matched by a mental toll, as Hall explained: "Every day you do not know where you'll be tomorrow."
The United Nations intervened in July 2025, issuing a stark warning that the couple could perish "in such degrading conditions" unless they received immediate medical care. The UN labeled their detention "inhumane," a sentiment echoed by international observers and human rights organizations. According to the BBC, the Taliban's foreign minister responded by insisting that Barbie and Peter were "in constant contact with their families" and that their "human rights are being respected." He added that efforts to secure their release were underway, but that "these steps have not yet been completed."
Yet, for the Reynolds and their supporters, these assurances ring hollow. Hall has called on both the US and UK governments to "work together" and do more to secure the couple's release. The US State Department has publicly condemned the Taliban's "history of unjustly detaining foreign nationals," urging them to "permanently end their practice of hostage diplomacy and release all those unjustly detained immediately."
The Reynolds' plight is emblematic of a broader crisis facing foreigners and aid workers in Afghanistan since the Taliban's return to power. The BBC reports that many detainees have not been charged and have languished in prison for years. Hall, reflecting on her time in captivity, noted, "There are a lot of people actually haven't been charged and have been there for at least a year or two." The lack of transparency and due process leaves families in limbo and puts vulnerable detainees at risk.
Despite the grim circumstances, Hall remains hopeful for her friends' release. When asked what she would say to Peter and Barbie, she tearfully replied, "I love them, I know they will be out very soon, don't ever give up." Her plea is echoed by the couple's family and supporters around the world, who are urging governments, international organizations, and the Taliban themselves to act before it is too late.
As the weeks drag on, the Reynolds' story has become a rallying point for those advocating for human rights and the protection of foreign nationals in Afghanistan. Their decades of service, deep ties to the Afghan community, and the absence of any formal charges highlight the arbitrary and often perilous nature of life under the current regime. The international community faces a stark choice: intervene decisively or risk bearing witness to a tragedy that could have been averted.
For now, Peter and Barbie Reynolds remain behind bars, their fate uncertain, their health failing, and their loved ones waiting for the world to act.