Another American Is Coming Home After Trump Secures Hostage Deal

An American citizen held hostage by the Taliban in Afghanistan for over a year could soon be flying home thanks to efforts from the Trump administration in coordination with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Colorado native Dennis Coyle, 64, had spent decades working as an academic researcher in Afghanistan, but on January 27, 2025, he was taken into custody by the Taliban and held without charges, according to the James Foley Foundation, an American hostage advocacy group. After nearly 14 months in near-solitary confinement, Coyle’s release was finally secured, Trump’s special envoy for hostage response, Adam Boehler, told Fox News on Tuesday.

“President Trump made clear: the United States will not tolerate the unjust detention of its citizens—anywhere,” Boehler said. “His personal determination —executed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a fully aligned interagency team — has driven a shift to accountability, pressure, and results.”

Since being taken into custody last January, Coyle’s elderly mother and three sisters have worked to help secure his release, raising concerns about his health. It’s unlikely the American has received proper medical care, according to a website dedicated to raising awareness of Coyle’s situation. Coyle lived in Kabul after first arriving in Afghanistan in the early 2000s “to survey Afghanistan’s rich linguistic diversity and help Afghan communities develop resources in their own languages.” The American citizen had worked in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years before and kept up to date on his visas and work permits.

“We recognize the persistence of Dennis Coyle’s three sisters, whose advocacy helped drive this outcome. We recognize the efforts of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, partners in bringing Dennis home,” Boehler added.

Following the United States’ messy withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 under former President Joe Biden, the Taliban kidnapped multiple U.S. citizens and held them in solitary confinement, allowing the Americans to maintain minimal communications with their families and the outside world.

Coyle is now the sixth American hostage to be released by the Taliban since Trump came back into the White House, and he “joins over 100 Americans who have been freed” throughout the world since Trump was sworn in on January 20, 2025, according to the State Department.

U.S. citizens Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were released by the Taliban last January following negotiations started by the Biden administration that came to fruition under Trump. Then, in March of last year, Americans George Glezmann and Faye Hall were released. Amir Amiri was freed from Taliban custody last September after nine months in confinement.

The State Department said on Tuesday that “more work needs to be done” to bring home Americans still held by the Taliban, including Mahmoud Habibi and author Paul Overby. Habibi, who was Afghanistan’s former director of civil aviation, was abducted from his vehicle and arrested by the Taliban in 2022. He is believed to still be in custody, but the Taliban denies that it is holding him. Overby was last seen while conducting research for a book in Afghanistan in 2014.

“The Taliban must end their practice of hostage diplomacy,” the State Department added.