In a clear victory for the policy of “no American left behind,” the 64-year-old academic Dennis Walter Coyle, originally from Pueblo, Colorado, landed this Wednesday at the military base in San Antonio, Texas, after being released by the Taliban government in Kabul.
Coyle had been detained in January 2025 at his residence in the Afghan capital and held for more than 420 days in conditions close to solitary confinement, without the Afghan authorities filing specific charges against him.
The U.S. Department of State and Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that Coyle joins more than 100 Americans freed in the last 15 months during President Donald Trump’s second term. “President Trump is committed to ending unjust detentions abroad,” Rubio declared, thanking the United Arab Emirates and Qatar for their mediation support.
Earlier this month, I met Molly, Amy, and Patti as they asked for help freeing their brother Dennis Coyle from detention in Afghanistan. Today, Dennis is on his way home. We thank the UAE and Qatar for their support. The release is a positive step towards ending the practice of…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) March 24, 2026
The release took place on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, following an appeal by Coyle’s family to the Taliban Supreme Court, which considered the time already served “sufficient.”
The Afghan Foreign Ministry presented it as a gesture of goodwill for Eid al-Fitr, although Washington attributes it directly to U.S. diplomatic pressure, including the recent designation of Afghanistan as a sponsor of wrongful detentions.
Coyle, a linguistic researcher with nearly 20 years of legal work in Afghanistan supporting language communities, was taken from his home by Taliban intelligence without a clear explanation.
His family and the U.S. government always considered it an arbitrary detention used as leverage. “Our family is overwhelmed with joy to announce that our brother Dennis Coyle is free from the Taliban,” they stated in a communiqué.
The video of the moment of his arrival in San Antonio, Texas, where he was received by family members and U.S. officials, went viral:
— Tahir Shah (@TahirShah687) March 25, 2026
Official White House statement on the release:
In January, President Donald J. Trump vowed to secure the release of Dennis Coyle.
Today, after more than a year of captivity in Afghanistan, Dennis Coyle is free and heading home to America.
Another Promise Made, Promise Kept. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/QTX60YKI0k
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 24, 2026
President Trump himself had promised in January to bring him back, and the administration delivered. This release reinforces the image of an America that projects strength on the world stage and prioritizes its citizens. Other pending cases remain, such as those of Mahmood Habibi and Paul Overby, for which Rubio demanded immediate action from the Taliban.
As we have been reporting at Gateway Hispanic on cases of arbitrary detentions of Americans abroad and the Trump administration’s determination to resolve them, this news confirms the effective “America First” approach regarding hostages and arbitrary detentions abroad.
About The Author
Joana Campos
Joana Campos es abogada y editora con más de 10 años de experiencia en la gestión de proyectos de desarrollo internacional, enfocada en la sostenibilidad y el impacto social positivo. Anteriormente, trabajó como abogada corporativa. Egresada de la Universidad de Guadalajara.
