Family of American held hostage by Taliban demand Biden secure his release
Over a year since President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, American citizen Ryan Corbett, a humanitarian worker, remains a hostage under the Taliban. His deteriorating health has heightened his family’s pleas for more decisive action from the U.S. government.
Ryan’s wife, Anna Corbett, has become a vocal advocate for her husband’s release, meeting with members of Congress and appearing on major media outlets to urge Biden and other officials to intervene.
Ryan, initially captured a year after the controversial U.S. military withdrawal, remains in a basement cell without adequate sunlight or nutrition, contributing to his worsening condition, according to the website “Free Ryan Corbett,” which was created to demand his release.
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His wife’s efforts stem from direct communication with Ryan via nine brief video calls, through which the family has observed his worsening condition. “My latest call with Ryan only heightened my concerns about his mental and physical health,” Anna told The Daily Wire. She described distressing symptoms such as frequent fainting and constant ringing in his ears, indicative of severe neglect.
"I continue to call on President Biden to meet with me to discuss how we can bring Ryan home before it’s too late," she said.
The State Department remains vague about its efforts to secure Ryan’s release. A spokesperson mentioned ongoing collaborations with the U.N. Special Rapporteur’s office but offered no concrete details on the actions taken. “We consider Ryan’s detention to be wrongful and we will continue to work securing his immediate release," the spokesperson stated.
Alice Jill Edwards, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on torture, released a statement on June 13 expressing concerns over Ryan’s detention and worsening health and urged the Taliban to provide immediate medical care in a civilian hospital to prevent potentially irreversible damage.
“The conditions in which this humanitarian worker is being detained are utterly inadequate and substantially below international standards. This is having a significant impact on his physical and mental health, which is declining rapidly. Without adequate medical care he is at risk of irreparable harm or even death,” Edwards said.
Ryan Corbett, who moved his family to Afghanistan in 2010, had been actively involved in local development through his enterprise, Bloom Afghanistan. Despite the family’s safe evacuation in 2021, Ryan returned months later to support his team, only to be detained by the Taliban since Aug. 10, 2022.
His 18-year-old daughter, Ketsia, recently made an appeal to Biden in a video, highlighting the emotional toll of the ordeal. “Every day I get out of bed, put on a smile, and push forward,” she said, stressing the psychological burden of her father’s absence. “My dad’s being tortured and abused and he feels forgotten and alone,” she said.
Political responses have been pointed, with criticisms directed at the Biden administration for perceived weaknesses in handling Americans detained abroad.
Former President Donald Trump’s campaign told the Wire that such situations would be less likely under his leadership, citing his stronger international stance.
In efforts to escalate the situation, attorneys for Ryan Corbett filed urgent petitions with the United Nations, describing severe maltreatment and health risks. Testimonies from recently released detainees depicted a grim picture of Ryan’s conditions, including torture and lack of basic amenities like regular showers or sufficient sunlight, according to CBS News.
Anna Corbett’s relentless advocacy has continued with her attendance at the president’s State of the Union address and multiple trips to Washington, D.C., to engage with key officials. Despite these efforts, she expressed frustration with the slow pace of progress.
A recent interview on PBS’ “NewsHour” with Amna Nawaz gave Anna a platform to share her hardships and the family’s enduring hope. She detailed minimal communication with Ryan, including a call on Christmas Day that did little to reassure the family about his well-being. “It was so short. And he expressed just how difficult it is to be held in a basement cell for so long,” she said.
She added that the last picture of her husband she had seen was from January 2023. “And he’s lost a lot of weight. And he looked aged. He looked really tired. And he looked frail. So, that was so hard to see for the kids and I.”
Anna said she had been working to secure her husband’s release for 17 months, had made eight trips to Washington, “with three children alone.” She added, “And I’m really concerned that, is this really being prioritized or not?”
As the Senate passed a resolution earlier this month urging Ryan’s release before his upcoming birthday, the Corbett family remains in a painful wait, clinging to hope for his safe return. Anna’s message to her husband: “I’m going to fight for him to bring him back home. We love him. We miss him like crazy. And we’re really worried about him,” she told PBS.
