WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is considering whether to censure Afghanistan over its detention of American citizens, a move that could lead to a ban on US passport holders traveling to the country, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Rubio on February 27 designated Iran as a state sponsor of wrongful detention, the first country to be designated under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in September.
In addition to making the same determination for Afghanistan, the US could restrict the use of US passports for travel to Afghanistan, the sources said. Such a passport restriction is currently only in place for North Korea.
Rubio warned the US could restrict travel to Iran over its detention of US citizens, but has not imposed any restrictions. The US and Israel launched a war against Iran the day after announcing the determination.
Washington is demanding that Kabul release all US citizens detained in the country, including Mahmood Habibi and Dennis Coyle, the sources said. The US is also seeking the return of the remains of Paul Overby, an author who was last seen close to Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan in 2014, the sources said.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters was unable to reach the government in Afghanistan for comment. Afghanistan’s Taliban government has previously denied it detained Habibi, who was head of Afghanistan’s civil aviation.
Speaking at an event at the State Department on Monday to mark US Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day, Rubio said the US would apply the new designation to governments that detain US citizens in an attempt to gain leverage over Washington.
“They view Americans as a commodity that they can grab on to and then trade in the future. That cycle has to stop, and that’s why this designation now exists,” he said. CBS News was the first to report on the US considering designating Afghanistan as a state sponsor of wrongful detention.
