Pakistan rescues North American family of five members being taken hostage by Afghan Taliban
Pakistan Army has rescued an American woman her Canadian husband and their three children who abducted in Afghanistan in 2012.
According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) the hostages were a Canadian, his American wife, and their three children. The hostages were rescued through an intelligence-based operation by Pakistani troops and Inter-Services Intelligence.
The US intelligence services had been tracking the movement of the hostages and informed their Pakistani partners when the hostages were moved across the Pak-Afghan border into Kurram Agency on October 11.
In the initial hours after their release, the family was still in Pakistan as arrangements were being made to return them to either the US or Canada.
The couple American Caitlan Coleman, 31 and her Canadian husband, Joshua Boyle, 33, were kidnapped by the Taliban in 2012 while they were travelling as tourists in Afghanistan and were held in captivity since.
Taliban-aligned Haqqani released video during their captivity. The insurgent group has been demanding the release of three of its prisoners in Afghanistan.
The success underscores the importance of timely intelligence sharing and Pakistan’s continued commitment towards fighting this menace through cooperation between two forces against a common enemy.
President Trump praised the Pakistani government for helping secure the release of a North American family that had been held hostage by a Taliban-linked group.
Trump has previously been deeply critical of the Pakistani government’s efforts to fight terrorist groups. He called out Islamabad in an August speech laying out a new U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and South Asia.
He further added this is a positive moment for our country’s relationship with Pakistan and The Pakistani government’s cooperation is a sign that it is honoring America’s wishes for it to do more to provide security in the region