Sources say recent US warnings to the Taliban over detained American citizens have become a serious concern within the office of their leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada.
According to sources in Kandahar who spoke to Amu TV, Akhundzada has held several consultative meetings in recent days with senior Taliban officials to discuss the warnings.
The development follows a renewed warning from a senior US official calling for the immediate release of four American detainees.
Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to President Trump and senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council, said in a post on X that Washington would not tolerate what he described as “hostage diplomacy.”
“We will not tolerate this heinous practice of hostage diplomacy,” Gorka wrote. “The commander in chief will not rest until every American held by the Taliban returns home.”
Gorka also pointed to a recent US designation of Afghanistan as a country supporting wrongful detention, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, saying it sent a “strong message” to the Taliban.
Taliban have not publicly responded to the latest warning.
One of the detainees, Mahmood Shah Habibi, a former head of Afghanistan’s civil aviation authority and a US citizen, has been the subject of previous reports. The Taliban have repeatedly denied holding him.
However, Reuters has reported that US officials believe Habibi is in Taliban custody and have presented evidence to support that assessment.
The claims by sources about internal Taliban discussions could not be independently verified.
Analysts say the renewed US pressure reflects growing frustration in Washington over the Taliban’s handling of detainees.
Sources also said that broader regional developments, including recent US military actions involving Iran, have contributed to heightened concern among Taliban leaders.
The United States has repeatedly called on the Taliban to release detainees and abandon what it describes as hostage-taking practices, urging the international community to condemn such actions.
