A British couple in their 70s imprisoned by the Taliban are due in court in Kabul on Thursday but have not been informed of the charges, their family has said.
Peter Reynolds, 79, and his wife, Barbie, 75, who run a training business in Afghanistan, were detained last month when they travelled to their home in Bamiyan province.
Barbie Reynolds managed to phone her family from Pul-e-Charki prison in Kabul to tell them a court date had been set for Thursday for her and her husband, amid increasing concern about his health.
No reason has been given for the court hearing. In a voicemail to the family she said: “We don’t even know what the charges are against us. We will hear the charges for the first time then.”
The couple have been running projects in schools in Afghanistan for 18 years and decided to stay in the country after the Taliban seized power in 2021. One of the projects involved educational training for mothers and children in Bamiyan, one of the largest cities in central Afghanistan.
There is a ban on women working and on female education beyond primary school, but their work had apparently been approved by the Bamiyan local authority.
The couple’s daughter, Sarah Entwistle, told the Guardian she feared her parents would not get a fair trial because their interpreter, Juya, who was arrested alongside them, is also due in court on Thursday and will not be allowed to translate during the proceedings.
She said: “Mum is obviously extremely concerned that without a competent interpreter, their case cannot be accurately or fairly represented and [they] will not be able to properly follow or engage in the proceedings, in serious breach of their rights.”
Juya has also been caring for her father who requires regular heart medication. At the weekend, Entwistle said her father’s life was in danger after his health deteriorated.
On Wednesday, she said: “We remain extremely concerned for Dad in particular. Without access to the medication he needs, his continued detention poses a serious risk to his life.”
She said her parents were being held separately and had been denied access to each other for the last 10 days.
The couple were arrested on 1 February with Juya and a American-Chinese friend, Faye Hall, who had rented a plane to travel with them.
At the time an employee for Rebuild, the couple’s training company, was informed that their flight “did not coordinate with the local government”.
Entwistle said: “Again, we ask the Taliban to release Dad, Mum, Faye and the interpreter as a gesture of goodwill during this season of Ramadan.”
