A Western couple held hostage by the Taliban for four years have appeared in a chilling new video warning their captors will “execute us – women and children included” if their demands aren’t met.
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In the new video, Coleman, who was pregnant when she went missing, and Boyle make a plea for the USA and Canadian governments to pressure the Afghan government to change their policies to secure their freedom.
In the video, both Boyle and Coleman, who was pregnant at the time and has given birth to two children while in captivity, are shown asking their governments to pressure the Afghan government to stop executing prisoners.
A State Department spokesman said on Tuesday the validity of the video was being studied but offered no further comment.
Dressed in a black dress and head covering, with her left hand holding what appears to be an earpiece to the side of her face, Coleman speaks directly to her parents and says she knows it is “terrifying and horrifying” for them to hear that she might be executed herself. In July 2016, Coleman’s parents revealed to the media they received a letter from their daughter saying she had given birth to a second child in captivity.
The video, uploaded to YouTube, came to public attention through the Maryland-based Site Intelligence Group, which monitors extremist activity online.
Global Affairs spokesperson Michael O’Shaughnessy said in an emailed statement that the department is aware of the video.
“The Government of Canada will not comment or release any information which may compromise or risk endangering the safety of Canadian citizens overseas”, read an email from the Global Affairs Spokesman Michael O’Shaughnessy.
The government will not comment further or release any information that might risk endangering the safety of Canadian citizens overseas, he added. Mujahid said Boyle and Coleman and their two children remain in captivity but in good health.
The couple has appeared in several Taliban videos, although the newly released clip would be the first since 2013.
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Boyle and Coleman vanished a few days after arriving in Afghanistan while on a backpacking trip near the Pakistani border in 2012. “Please grant them an opportunity to continue their lives with us, and bring peace to their families”.
