The Afghan Taliban government says American national Dennis Coyle has been released

This is a locator map for Afghanistan with its capital, Kabul. (AP Photo)

2026-03-24T12:36:50Z

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan’s Taliban government said on Tuesday that authorities have released American academic Dennis Coyle, held in Afghanistan since January 2025.

A statement from the country’s foreign ministry said the academic researcher had been released in Kabul, the country’s capital, on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the holiday following Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting.

It said the release followed an appeal from his family and after the country’s Supreme Court “considered his previous imprisonment sufficient.”

Coyle was detained in January 2025 on allegations of violating laws, although Afghan authorities never publicly stated what laws he was accused of having violated.