Afghanistan's Taliban government released a British couple after holding them without charge since February, after a diplomatic intervention by Qatar officials.

A British couple held by the Taliban in Afghanistan since February were released on Friday after Qatar intervened on their behalf. Photo by Shekib Mohammadyl/UPI UPI

Sept. 19 (UPI) -- An elderly British couple detained in Afghanistan since the beginning of February were en route home via Qatar on Friday after being released from a maximum security prison, with the Gulf emirate credited with brokering their freedom.

Peter Reynolds, 80, and Barbie Reynolds, 76, were freed earlier by the Taliban seven months after they were arrested as they were on their way to their home in Bamyan province, about 90 miles northwest of Kabul, and held without charge, much of the time separated.

The Taliban said the pair were released after court proceedings for violating domestic laws but has never detailed the offenses the couple are alleged to have perpetrated.

Before departing from Kabul International Airport, Mrs. Reynolds told Sky News she was looking forward to seeing their children and other family but insisted she and her husband hoped to return to be able to return Afghanistan, where they ran an education and training organization for the past 18 years.

The couple's family in the U.K. and the United States had become increasingly fearful over their deteriorating health in detention. They have five children, 17 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

"My dad was chained to murderers and criminals," son, Jonathan Reynolds, told the BBC back in July, and that they had been without sunlight for six weeks when they were held in a basement.

American Faye Hall, who was arrested alongside the Reynolds but freed in April, said the couple's health had gone downhill rapidly in prison, that they were "literally dying" and that time was running out for them.

Expressing relief that their ordeal was now at an end, Britain's Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Hamish Falconer, hailed Qatar for its diplomatic efforts.

"The state of Qatar played an essential role in this case, for which I am hugely grateful. Qatar continues to play a critical role in conflict mediation in the Middle East and beyond," he said.

Falconer reiterated Foreign Office advice telling Britons not to travel to Afghanistan, warning that the British government's ability to provide consular assistance to people who ran into trouble there was "extremely limited."

U.K. special envoy to Afghanistan Richard Lindsay, who was accompanying the couple on their flight out of Kabul, also thanked the Qatari government but refused to speculate why the couple had been singled out by the Taliban.

Senior Qatari diplomat Mirdef Ali Alqashouti, also on the flight to Doha, said the case illustrated that resolutions to difficult issues were achievable with patience and good grace.

"We are very grateful to Afghanistan and the U.K. for their cooperation to conclude this case. It's a very good moment for us to show our appreciation to make sure that this is the way we deal with problems and conflicts, and how to resolve it with good manners and with peaceful solutions," said Alqashouti.

The couple have had a lifelong relationship with the country after marrying there 55 years ago and opting to remain after the return to Taliban rule after Western forces completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, after a two-decade-long war.