LONDON, June 21(ABC): The Taliban has freed a veteran television cameraman and four other British nationals held in Afghanistan for six months, his friends and former colleagues said on Monday.
Peter Jouvenal was one of a “number” of Britons that the government in London in February said were being held by the hardline Islamists.
On Monday, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss tweeted the government had “secured the release of five British nationals” held in the country.
Her department said in a separate statement that the five “had no role in the UK government s work in Afghanistan and travelled to Afghanistan against the UK Government s travel advice.
“This was a mistake,” it added.
Truss and the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) gave no further details about the Britons.
In Kabul, Afghanistan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter that the Britons were “carrying out activities against the country s laws and traditions of the people of Afghanistan”.
“After consecutive meetings between the IEA (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) and Britain the said persons were released yesterday (Sunday)… and handed over to their home country,” he added, without confirming the names of those released.
“They promised to abide by the laws of Afghanistan, its traditions and culture of the people and not to violate them again.”
