'Danger tourist' and charity medic among three Britons being held prisoner by ... trends now
Three British men are being held prisoner by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Charity medic Kevin Cornwell, 53, and another British national who manages a hotel for aid workers in the capital Kabul have been detained by the Taliban's secret police since early January.
The other Briton being held is notorious 'danger tourist' Miles Routledge, 23, who boasts to his thousands of followers online that he travels 'to the most dangerous places on Earth for fun'.
He had recently returned to Afghanistan, filming videos shooting guns with Taliban troops, despite having to be evacuated from a 'holiday' in the country in 2021 when the Islamists seized back power.
The UK does not have an embassy or any consulates in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Last night, a Foreign Office spokesman said: 'We are working hard to secure consular contact with British nationals detained in Afghanistan and we are supporting families.'
Miles Routledge, 23, first grabbed headlines during the Taliban take-over of Afghanistan last year when he went on 'holiday' to the country and had to be evacuated from Kabul
Kevin Cornwell, 53, a British medic for charity Iqarus, who has been detained by the Taliban's General Directorate of Intelligence in Kabul, Afghanistan, since January 11
Mr Cornwell, a married father from Middlesbrough, was arrested in a raid at his hotel by officers from the Taliban's General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) on January 11. Taliban agents accused him of having an illegal firearm in the safe in his room at the Darya Village Hotel, which is popular with Western humanitarian staff.
Mr Cornwell's family said he had been granted a licence for the handgun by the Taliban government.
He had been in Afghanistan for 11 months working as a medic for Iqarus International, which provides free health care to local people. Also detained in the raid was the hotel's British manager, whom this newspaper has agreed not to name at the request of his family.
He and Mr Cornwell have been held ever since in a secure unit for foreign nationals run by the GDI. No charges have been brought and they have not been granted legal representation.
The two men's families are being supported by Scott Richards, an experienced negotiator with Presidium Network, a British non-profit organisation that works in conflict zones.
Mr Richards said: 'Having spoken with multiple witnesses to the events, it could be that we may be looking at a misunderstanding with GDI who may have been reacting to a tip. The weapon in Kevin's room was stored with the licence issued by the Taliban's ministry of interior and was apparently kept inside its holster. The weapon never left the safe, it had never been carried. So the GDI could have been following a tip, and then they find themselves with two British nationals in detention.'
