WASHINGTON — Adam Boehler, the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, said that 1,000 days have passed since Mahmood Shah Habibi was detained by the Taliban.
“We remain committed to securing his release and the freedom of all Americans held captive,” Boehler wrote in a post on X, using the hashtag #BringThemHome.
Habibi, who once led Afghanistan’s Civil Aviation Authority, was arrested in August 2022 by the Taliban’s intelligence service. His detention came just 11 days after the U.S. drone strike that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a residential compound in Kabul’s Sherpur neighborhood.
Reports at the time suggested that Habibi had been accused of providing information that led to the strike on al-Zawahiri. The Taliban have not publicly commented on the arrest or any charges against him.
Originally from Kandahar, Habibi served as the deputy director for operations at the Civil Aviation Authority between 2012 and 2016, before being appointed as director of the agency under the former Afghan government.
He is one of several U.S. citizens believed to be in Taliban custody. His prolonged detention has become emblematic of growing concern in Washington over what officials describe as the Taliban’s use of hostage diplomacy amid stalled negotiations and international isolation.
