DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation, said Thursday that he has called for the release of an American citizen captured by Taliban-linked militants in discussions with Taliban leadership as continued violence threatens to scuttle a peace deal to end America’s longest-running war.
In a series of tweets from his official account, Khalilzad said he pressed Taliban leaders during an overnight meeting in Doha, Qatar, to secure the release of Mark R.
Frerichs, a Navy veteran turned contractor who abducted by militants in late January. The tweets by Khalilzad mark the first public statement about the capture from a Trump administration official.