Two Americans released in prisoner swap with Afghanistan

Americans Ryan Corbett and William McKenty regained their freedom Tuesday after years of captivity in Afghanistan.

In exchange, Washington handed Khan Mohamed over to the Taliban government, who was serving a life sentence in California after being imprisoned nearly two decades ago. He was charged with drug trafficking and terrorism.

Glezmann and Corbett were captured by the Taliban in 2022. The latter's family expressed their "overwhelming gratitude" this week on a website it used to campaign for his release. Fulfilling this goal, they assure, ends "the most challenging and uncertain 894 days of our lives."

After thanking both Donald Trump and Joe Biden and members of their respective administrations, their relatives dedicated words of thanks to Qatar, which acted as mediator.

"While we begin the healing process with Ryan by our side, we remain mindful of the many families who are still waiting for their loved ones to return, including the families of George Glezmann and Mahmoud Habibi," they added. "We recognize the immense privilege of our family’s reunion today, and pledge to keep praying – and fighting – for George and Mahmoud’s swift release."

The Taliban government called the exchange a step toward "normalizing" relations with the United States, according to NPR. In November, he had signaled that he hoped to open a "new chapter" in bilateral relations with Trump in the White House.