Three British men are reportedly in the custody of the Taliban's secret police in Kabul since January. All three were detained in separate incidents, said reports.
They have been identified as "danger tourist" Miles Routledge, charity medic Kevin Cornwell and a hotelier who has not been named. The unnamed man was managing a hotel in Kabul when he was apprehended, reported Sky News.
According to British government authorities, efforts are on to secure the release of the three men. Home Secretary Suella Braverman told Sky News that the government was "in negotiations" with the Taliban.
"Anyone travelling to dangerous parts of the world should take the utmost caution. If they are going to do that, they should always act on the advice of the Foreign Office travel advice. If there are risks to people's safety, if they're a British citizens abroad, then the UK government is going to do whatever it takes to ensure that they're safe. The government is in negotiations and working hard to ensure people's safety is upheld."
Meanwhile, Scott Richards from the Presidium Network,
a non-profit organisation representing Cronwell and the unnamed Briton, told Sky News that he believes the pair are in good health and being well treated.
"There has been no meaningful contact [with the men], there has been no access by international monitoring agencies... and there's been no other form of access to the individuals to date."
"We're very hopeful that contact will be made," he added, expressing hope that a positive development in the situation could coincide with the end of Ramadan.
Richards added that there were "no official charges as such" and the two men's detention on 11 January was understood to be over a weapon in a safe in Cornwell's room. He added that the gun was stored with a licence issued by the Afghan interior ministry.
"That license is missing," Richards said, adding: "But we have taken several statements from witnesses who have seen the licence and affirm its existence. "It is perfectly possible that during the search the licence was separated from the weapon and, as such, why we refer to this scenario as a probable misunderstanding."
Danger tourist
Miles Routledge | Twitter
Miles Routledge, one of the three who is in Taliban's custody, has been vocal about his love for "dark" and "extreme" places.
The 23-year-old man, who travels to dangerous countries and posts about it online, had gained fame and courted controversy before too.
In August 2021, Routledge was on a "holiday" in Afghanistan when the Taliban took control of the country. It was then said that he had chosen to travel to Afghanistan after looking up a list of the most dangerous places to visit in the world. However, he was then rescued by the British Army.
Routledge thanked the British Army for airlifting him out of Kabul but returned to the country since then.
