American held in Afghanistan has been released, his family says
Ryan Corbett, an American detained in Afghanistan, was released amid the U.S. presidential transition, according to his family.
At least one American detained in Afghanistan was released amid the U.S. presidential transition, according to his family, in an apparent prisoner exchange with the Taliban.
The Taliban had confirmed that they were holding Ryan Corbett, an American arrested in Afghanistan in August 2022 and whom the State Department had classified as wrongfully detained.
"Today, our hearts are filled with overwhelming gratitude and praise to God for sustaining Ryan’s life and bringing him back home after what has been the most challenging and uncertain 894 days of our lives," his family said in a statement on their website early Tuesday.
In a statement, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said "American citizens" had been released in exchange for Khan Muhammad, who was arrested in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar about two decades ago and who had been serving a life sentence in California.
According to the U.S. Justice Department, Muhammad was convicted in 2008 on narcoterrorism and heroin distribution charges. It said Muhammad, an Afghan Taliban member, had sought to acquire rockets for attacks on Americans and their allies in Afghanistan, and purchased opium meant to be converted into heroin and sent to the United States.
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