A professor from the American University of Afghanistan will be released as part of a prisoner swap between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
Professor Kevin King, 63, was kidnapped by the Taliban in 2016 and has been held captive with Timothy Weeks, a 50-year-old Australian professor from the same university. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Tuesday that he had negotiated their release in return for three Taliban prisoners.
The three prisoners held high ranks within the Taliban, including Anas Haqqani. Haqqani’s older brother, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is a top-ranking deputy in the Taliban’s military operations and leads the Haqqani Network, a terrorist network in Pakistan known for planning suicide bombings. In addition to Haqqani, the Afghans promised the release of Hafiz Rashid, who built suicide vests and planned bombings, and Haji Mali Khan, a senior Taliban commander.
Both Rashid and Khan also have high-ranking relatives within the Taliban hierarchy. Ghani claimed the prisoner swap is a key step to “facilitate direct peace negotiations” between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
King and Weeks were captured in Kabul, and it is not clear where they are being held. Ghani noted that the two men’s health deteriorated while being held by the Taliban and said their release is “imminent.”
In 2017, the Taliban sent a hostage tape to President Trump in which King explained that he was suffering from heart and kidney problems. He added, “If we stay here for much longer, we will be killed. I don’t want to die here.”
The Taliban claimed they are not equipped to care for King’s ailments, stating, “We have tried to treat him from time to time, but we do not have medical facilities as we are in a war situation.”
King grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and attended the University of Miami. He first taught in Kabul in 2008. He returned to Kabul in 2014 and taught English until his capture. Prior to teaching in Kabul, he taught in Cambodia, Libya, and Iraq.
U.S. forces attempted to rescue King twice but were unsuccessful.
