Washington, Oct 13 (AP) Five years after they were seizedby an extremist network in the mountains of Afghanistan, anAmerican woman, her Canadian husband and their children allthree born in captivity are free after a dramatic rescueorchestrated by the US and Pakistani governments and have leftPakistan, officials have said.
The US said Pakistan accomplished the release of CaitlanColeman of Stewartstown, Pennsylvania, and her husband,Canadian Joshua Boyle, who were abducted and held by theHaqqani network, which has ties to the Taliban.
The operation, which came after years of US pressure onPakistan for assistance, unfolded quickly and ended with whatsome described as a dangerous raid, a shootout and a captor'sfinal, terrifying threat to "kill the hostage." Boyle sufferedonly a shrapnel wound, his family said.
US officials did not confirm the details.
"Today they are free," President Donald Trump said in astatement, crediting the US-Pakistani partnership for securingthe release.
Trump later praised Pakistan for its willingness to "domore to provide security in the region" and said the releasesuggests other "countries are starting to respect the UnitedStates of America once again."The couple was kidnapped in October of 2012 while on abackpacking trip that took them to Russia, Kazakhstan,Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, and then to Afghanistan. Colemanwas several months pregnant at the time, "naive," but also"adventuresome" with a humanitarian bent, her father Jamestold The Associated Press in 2012.
The Pakistani military said the family had been freed in"an intelligence-based operation by Pakistan troops" afterthey'd crossed the border from Afghanistan. Two Pakistanisecurity officials said the family was flown out of Islamabadon Friday, without saying where they were headed.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity inaccordance with official protocol.
Boyle and the High Commissioner for Pakistan to Canadadescribed a scene in which gunshots rang out as Boyle, hiswife and their children were intercepted by Pakistani forceswhile being transported in the trunk of their captors' car.
Boyle told his parents there was a shoot-out in whichsome of his captors were killed and that the last words he'dheard from the kidnappers were, "kill the hostage," his fatherPatrick told reporters after speaking with his son. Theyounger Boyle also told his father he'd been hit by shrapnelin the leg. Three intelligence officials said theconfrontation happened near a road crossing in the Nawa Kiliarea of the district of Kohat in northwest Pakistan.
The high commissioner, Tariq Azim Khan, said: "We knowthere was a shootout and Pakistan commandos carried out anattack and rescued the hostages."A US military official said that a military hostage teamhad flown to Pakistan Wednesday, prepared to fly the familyout. The team did a preliminary health assessment and had atransport plane ready to go. But sometime after daybreakThursday, as the family members were walking to the plane,Boyle said he did not want to board.(AP)AMS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.