US Issues Travel Warning: Taliban Detentions and Kidnappings Threaten Americans in Afghanistan

If you're an American thinking about travelling to Afghanistan, Washington has a message for you: don't.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday designated Afghanistan a 'state sponsor of wrongful detention,' making it only the second country in history to receive such a label. The first was Iran. That designation came on 27 February. The US and Israel launched military strikes against Tehran the very next day.

The Iran Timing Isn't Lost on Anyone

No one is saying the US plans to bomb Afghanistan. But the pattern is hard to ignore.

Both designations were announced on symbolic days. Iran's came hours before Operation Epic Fury began targeting Iranian military infrastructure. Afghanistan's was unveiled on Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day, with families of detained Americans gathered at the State Department.

The designation activates powers under an executive order signed last September. It allows the administration to impose sanctions, export controls, and — here's the part that matters — passport travel restrictions.

Right now, such restrictions exist for only one country: North Korea.

Americans can't travel there on US passports without getting special government permission. If the same rules apply to Afghanistan, visiting the country could become illegal for US citizens. Even for those with dying parents or property disputes back home.

A 64-Year-Old Professor Held Without Charges

At the centre of this story is Dennis Coyle.

The 64-year-old academic from Colorado was detained by the Taliban's General Directorate of Intelligence in January 2025. His family says he's been held in near-solitary confinement ever since. He needs permission to use the bathroom. No charges have been filed against him.

Coyle was taken just six days after Ryan Corbett, another American, was released at the start of President Trump's second term, according to CBS News.

'The Taliban continues to use terrorist tactics, kidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions,' Rubio said in a statement. 'These despicable tactics need to end.'

The US is also demanding the release of Mahmood Habibi, an Afghan-American businessman who ran Afghanistan's civil aviation department before August 2022. The FBI believes the Taliban abducted him from his vehicle in Kabul. The Taliban denies holding him.

What This Means for Afghan-Americans

There are roughly 300,000 to 350,000 people of Afghan descent living in the US, according to War on the Rocks. Many still have relatives in Afghanistan. Some own property there. Others work for aid organisations or news outlets that require them to travel.

For them, this designation creates an impossible bind.

The State Department already issued its strongest warning against travel to Afghanistan. It says 'all American citizens, including tourists and US-Afghan dual nationals, are targeted for detention.' But this new label raises the stakes. If passport restrictions follow, Americans who travel to Afghanistan risk kidnapping by the Taliban and prosecution by their own government when they return.

Go see your family. Get arrested on both ends.

The Administration's Numbers

At Monday's ceremony, Special Envoy for Hostage Response Adam Boehler said the administration has brought home 175 individuals, including 100 Americans, wrongfully detained abroad since Trump's second term began.

The Taliban, meanwhile, called the designation 'regrettable' and said it wanted to resolve matters through dialogue, according to Reuters.

But diplomacy may be running short. UN Ambassador Mike Waltz accused the Taliban of 'hostage diplomacy' at a Security Council meeting on Monday. He questioned whether Afghanistan deserves $1 billion (£743 million) in humanitarian aid while it denies basic rights to women and holds innocent Americans.

Washington's message is blunt. If you go to Afghanistan, you're on your own.