White House cheers release of two Americans freed in a swap with Taliban brokered by Biden, Qatar

by | Jan 22, 2025 | U.S. News

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By ZEKE MILLER, JON GAMBRELL and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — A prisoner swap between the United States and Afghanistan’s Taliban freed two Americans in exchange for a Taliban figure imprisoned for life in California on drug trafficking and terrorism charges, officials said Tuesday.

The deal to release two Americans, Ryan Corbett and William McKenty, was brokered by Joe Biden ‘s administration before he left office Monday, according to a Trump administration official who was not authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity.

The Taliban’s Foreign Ministry in Kabul said the two U.S. citizens had been exchanged for Khan Mohammed, who was sentenced to two life terms in 2008.

Biden, who oversaw the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, on Monday handed power to President Donald Trump. The Taliban praised the swap as a step toward the “normalization” of ties between the U.S. and Afghanistan.

That is likely a tall order, as most countries still don’t recognize the Taliban’s rule and two other Americans are believed held. The Trump White House cheered the release and thanked Qatar for its assistance with the deal while pressing the Taliban to free other Americans.

“The Trump Administration will continue to demand the release of all Americans held by the Taliban, especially in light of the billions of dollars in U.S. aid they’ve received in recent years,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said in a statement.

Khan Mohammed, center, is embraced in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, after his release as part of a prisoner swap between the United States and Afghanistan’s Taliban, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. Mohammed, who had been sentenced in California to two terms of life imprisonment in 2008 on drug trafficking and terrorism charges, was freed in exchange for two Americans. (AP Photo/Hedayat Shah)

U.S., Taliban and Qatar involved in the swap

Corbett, who had lived in Afghanistan with his family when the U.S.-backed government collapsed in 2021, was detained by the Taliban in August 2022 on a business trip.

“Our hearts are filled with overwhelming gratitude and praise to God for sustaining Ryan’s life and bringing him back home after what has been the most challenging and uncertain 894 days of our lives,” the family’s statement said. They thanked both Trump and Biden.

Corbett’s family also praised Qatari officials “for their vital role in facilitating Ryan’s release, and for their visits to Ryan as the United States’ Protecting Power in Afghanistan.” Qatar has hosted negotiations between the U.S. and the Taliban over the years.

A Qatar Foreign Ministry statement said those who were traded passed through Doha and that it hopes the deal “would pave the way for achieving further understandings” to resolve disputes peacefully.

It was unclear what McKenty was doing in Afghanistan.

Biden administration’s effort to get a deal

Before Biden left office, his administration had been trying to work out a deal to free Corbett, McKenty as well as George Glezmann and Mahmood Habibi, in exchange for Muhammad Rahim, one of the remaining detainees at the military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

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