‘Immense joy’ for family as elderly British couple held by Taliban are freed

An elderly British couple who were held by the Taliban for seven months without charge have been freed.

Barbie, 76, and Peter Reynolds, 80, have been released from detention in Afghanistan, the Foreign Office has confirmed.

The couple landed in Doha on Friday afternoon and were reunited with their daughter, Sarah Entwistle. Ms Reynolds told Sky News it was “wonderful to be here”.

Earlier, footage showed them boarding a plane in Kabul, where Mr Reynolds told Sky News: “We are just very thankful.”

She added: “We’ve been treated very well. We’re looking forward to seeing our children. We are looking forward to returning to Afghanistan if we can. We are Afghan citizens.”

In a statement, their family said it was “a moment of immense joy” and they were “deeply thankful to everyone who played a role in securing their release”.

“This experience has reminded us of the power of diplomacy, empathy, and international cooperation,” they added. “While the road to recovery will be long as our parents regain their health and spend time with their family, today is a day of tremendous joy and relief.”

They thanked Qatari mediators for their “unwavering support”, as well as highlighting the backing from the UK and US governments, and the UN.

The couple were arrested by the Taliban on 1 February when they were returning to their home in Bamyan province in central Afghanistan.

They spent seven and a half months in detention without being charged and were held separately in a maximum-security prison until late May.

They were then transferred to the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI), with the promise of release within two to three days, but this went on for months.

Foreign Office minister Hamish Falconer said the UK had worked intensively since their detention and supported the family throughout.

“The government’s ability to help those in need of consular support in Afghanistan is extremely limited. Our travel advice is clear that individuals should not travel to Afghanistan,” he added.

Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer welcomed their release, saying in a statement: “I welcome the release of Peter and Barbara Reynolds from detention in Afghanistan, and I know this long-awaited news will come as a huge relief to them and their family.

“I want to pay tribute to the vital role played by Qatar, including the Amir, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, in securing their freedom.”

A spokesperson at the Taliban government’s foreign ministry, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, said the couple “violated Afghan law” and were released from prison on Friday after a court hearing.

His statement, posted on X (Twitter), did not say what law the couple were alleged to have broken.

Mr Balkhi thanked Qatar for its “sincere efforts and mediation” regarding the couple, who he said were passed over to Richard Lindsay, the UK’s special envoy for Afghanistan.

Upon their release, Mr Lindsay told Sky News it remained “unclear” on what grounds the couple had been detained, but said they were “very relieved to be going home and delighted to be reunited with their family”.

Asked about their health, he said: “I am not a doctor, but they are very happy.”

The British couple had been living in Afghanistan for the past 18 years, running education and training projects and decided to remain in the country even after the Taliban’s takeover in 2021.

The couple’s family have repeatedly called for the couple’s release, claiming they were being mistreated and held on undisclosed charges.

Their children have spoken previously about fears they have for their parents’ health. Mr Reynolds, who has suffered heart attacks in the past, appears to have developed some symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, according to his son Jonathan.

He said in July that his father had experienced shaking in his hands, arms and face “to the point he was on the floor and he couldn’t get up”.

He added that his mother’s hands and feet were going blue, due to “malnutrition and some kind of anaemia”.

In July, United Nations human rights experts warned the couple’s physical and mental health was deteriorating rapidly, and they were at risk of irreparable harm or even death.

The Taliban’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, rejected allegations of mistreatment regarding the couple, claiming they are “in constant contact with their families” and their “human rights are being respected”.

A Qatari official said their release was thanks to “continuous efforts by my government to keep our policy in helping releasing hostages and our mediation and diplomacy”.

‘He’s f****** me’: Trump fumed to aides about Netanyahu after Israeli strike on Qatar

President Donald Trump fumed “He’s f***ing me” in a conversation about Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched airstrikes on US ally Qatar earlier this month, according to a report.

The US president has remained firm in his support for Israel’s military action in Gaza, but was said to be furious after Mr Netanyahu authorised strikes on Hamas leaders in Doha, The Wall Street Journal reported.

In the aftermath of the strikes, Trump said he was “not happy” with Israel and that the operation “does not advance Israel or America’s goals”.

But sources told the WSJ that Trump flew into a rage on receiving news of the strikes, and told close aides, including US secretary of state Marco Rubio: “Netanyahu is f***ing me.”

Previous reports suggested that the US president had rebuked Mr Netanyahu and complained that he had not been informed of the plan to hit Doha. He is said to have called the Israeli PM following the strikes to ask if they had been a success, and to have been unhappy on being told that they had not.

The prime minister of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, said in response to the attacks: “The time has come for the international community to stop using double standards and to punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed.”

Ahead of Mr Rubio’s state visit to Israel, Mr Trump had urged the Israeli leader to act with caution, saying: “My message is that they have to be very, very careful. They have to do something about Hamas, but Qatar has been a great ally to the United States.”

But recent evidence suggests that Mr Netanyahu has not heeded Mr Trump’s warnings, and that Israel has become increasingly belligerent about striking countries in the Middle East, including Washington’s allies.

“I’m mystified and so are many other Israelis,” Itamar Rabinovich, a former Israeli ambassador to the US, told the WSJ after the strikes. “The only thing that’s really working for [Netanyahu] is Trump’s support.”

“Netanyahu knows that while the White House may grumble a bit, there really is no downside to an ‘ask forgiveness, not permission’ approach,” said Damian Murphy, a former staff director for the Democrats on the Senate foreign relations committee.

The Independent has contacted the White House and the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for comment.

Mr Netanyahu told Mr Rubio during his state visit that the relationship between their respective countries was “as strong, as durable as the stones in the Western Wall that we just touched” as the pair wrote prayers on pieces of paper and placed them between the bricks.

The US president emphasised his commitment to Israel and its military campaign during a state visit to the UK. He backslapped Sir Keir Starmer as the British prime minister said that Hamas must have “no future” in Gaza.

Mr Netanyahu is subject to an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court and has been criticised by international leaders, human rights groups, and the United Nations, which recently concluded that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Israel vehemently denies the claims.

Why King Charles can’t forget his relationship with Nixon’s daughter

At last night’s state banquet, Trump talked from the heart – he waxed lyrical about the “priceless and eternal” kinship between the UK and the USA, doubled down on the King as his “friend” and wrapped the special relationship in a florid package of “history, fate, love and language”. But it was the more scripted King who penetrated deepest into what might have been a really “special relationship”, alluding to that once-upon-a-time moment when Charles admitted, “I myself might have been married off within the Nixon family!”

The attendees tittered gingerly, most none the wiser as to what the old King was talking about. But beneath her sapphire tiara you can be sure the Queen knew precisely what Charles was alluding to. That same fated summer of 1970, when a gauche Prince of Wales first met the impossibly English and pricelessly confident Camilla at a polo match, there was another woman in the frame.

When the world’s most “unlikely sex symbol” (cue a very green, 21-year-old Charles) was bumped from Canada to America on a two-day stopover, all eyes were on the prince and President Nixon’s pocket-sized eldest daughter, Tricia. Confident, blonde and crucially, a smidgeon older than Charles, here was a Transatlantic version of Camilla: a young woman with peaches-and-cream sex appeal and political pedigree; small wonder the prince looks terrified in all the footage.

That summer, President Nixon had his eye on the main chance; knee-deep in the quagmire of the Vietnam war and always susceptible to old-school imaging, by all accounts he was “unusually excited about the royals” and hosted a programme of events that threw the prince into constant contact with Tricia. These included a Washington Senators baseball game at RFK Stadium, where the couple sat side by side, engaging in giggling conversation, and a 700-strong dinner-dance at the White House.

That same summer, Tricia graced America’s TV cameras with a tour of the upper floor of the White House. Standing on the Harold Truman balcony in a startling white lace minidress, her interview is coquettish yet assured, its style a salient reminder of just how much the American presidential system borrows from Britain’s constitutional monarchy. Often referred to as an elective kingship, arguably the only magic ingredient the USA lacks is the transcendent glamour of the hereditary principle. This was a way of getting the best of both worlds.

Decades later, with Tricia safely married to a Harvard lawyer, Charles conceded, “That was quite amusing… they were trying to marry me off to Tricia Nixon.” In America at the time, there was little doubt that this was a special relationship that could seal the real deal. According to one columnist, “Nixon was so infatuated” because he “lacked what Charles and Anne had in abundance”. The article goes on to mock the parvenu president and his “intense but vain search for the magic which the prince … carried along so casually”. Which is one way of describing Charles’s unsure gait and untamed fop of dark hair.

In the end, the media dubbed them “the match that didn’t take”, and Nixon’s wide-eyed wonder at the immutable appeal of monarchy was nothing new. For all the king-bashing during the American Revolution (neatly alluded to at the royal state banquet), Thomas Jefferson admitted of royalty in 1789 that “some of us retain that idolatry still”. Stateside, the later wealth-generating 19th century coincided with the growing popularity of Britain’s monarchy under Victoria.

America’s vulgar plutocracy couldn’t get enough of our ancient families and titles, in an era when marrying an impoverished English lord became a well-trodden path, most famously modelled by the 9th Duke of Marlborough and his miserable American bride Consuelo Vanderbilt-Balsan. Jennie Jerome, later Lady Randolph Churchill, was an altogether more successful (if less rich) import. Today, Keir Starmer’s reveal of the Churchill archives at Chequers works on more than one level. As President Trump is always keen to remind us: “seen from American eyes, the word ‘special’ does not begin to do … justice” to the relationship between the two countries.

Perhaps not, but if in 2025 Britain is prepared to flaunt all its old-school glory (including a “so beautiful” Kate wrapped in a gold frock coat, strategically located next to a puffed-up Donald) in the vain hope of better trading terms, we can only wonder where a Nixon in Buckingham Palace might have left us.

Presumably, as a single woman from America’s first family, Tricia would have avoided the more vicious criticism and snobbishness that plagued Wallis Simpson (although the Watergate scandal may well have upended the Windsors’ claim to political impartiality). As for the twice-married woman from Baltimore who snared Edward VIII, Mrs Simpson didn’t have a hope in hell of winning the snooty British public round. JohnTravolta dancing with Prince Diana in 1985 was far nearer the mark – sufficiently fleeting and Hollywood-performative for everyone to feel like a winner (Charles long since forgotten as the star attraction of Windsor PLC).

Nearly a century on from Mrs Simpson, Meghan’s marriage to Prince Harry suggests that little Britain’s capacity to deliver a latent sneer lives on. Meanwhile, over in California, Meghan’s limpet-like commitment to her duchess title has done little to allay UK fears of being used.

As for Trump, the man who has it all except a crown, his version of America does not recognise the Meghan Markles of this world. This 47th president, of Scottish protestant descent and the son of a keen monarchist, clearly feels much closer to the British royal family than to a mixed-race princess from his own country. His lavish praise went in one direction only, as he pointedly insisted the king had raised a “remarkable son, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales”, who Trump assured us would have “unbelievable success in the future”.

Prince Harry and his choice of an American bride were the unspoken elephant in the room – a reminder that only half of America backs this controversial president whom Starmer’s Britain has set upon the highest pedestal. It speaks to the perversions of a world divided as never before, led by Donald Trump, who encourages those divisions, and in which the current rupture at the centre of our own royal family has actually proved something of a diplomatic asset during this unprecedented second state visit.

As to whether Queen Camilla appreciated being reminded of her blonde rival from over 50 years ago, a little light diplomacy behind closed doors may be required…

Tessa Dunlop is the author of ‘Elizabeth and Philip, The Story of Young Love, Marriage and Monarchy’

Family of heiress who died after ‘insect bite’ planning legal action

A Greek heiress who was found dead a day after her family claims she was sent home from a London hospital, sent messages to a friend saying “nobody is checking up on me, nobody is coming” before she was discharged.

Marissa Laimou, 28, had been rushed to University College London Hospital (UCLH) by ambulance after she had visited a clinic on 10 September, complaining of dizziness, itching and a high temperature, relatives have said.

When she arrived at the hospital, tests were carried out on her by nurses, but four hours later, she was discharged with antibiotics, a family friend claimed.

However, the following day, her housekeeper found her lifeless in her bed at the townhouse she lived in with her parents in Knightsbridge, central London.

The coroner is investigating her death, but her family has said the official diagnosis given by doctors was “toxic effect of venom” caused by an “animal or insect bite”.

The family has now accused UCLH of failing in its care for the 28-year-old.

A relative told MailOnline: “No doctor examined Marissa. Only the nurses saw her and did the blood tests, and passed the test to the doctor, and the doctor said you can be discharged, that’s all.

“They should not have let her go, definitely. If it was not so urgent, her oncologist would not have sent her in an ambulance, they would have said go in an Uber or go later. It was urgent. They didn’t address it with the serious way they should have done.”

The family friend, also speaking to MailOnline, revealed the messages sent by Laimou while she was at UCLH, where she had blood tests and was given a drip with fluids.

They said: “She was waiting, she sent some messages to her friend saying: ‘Nobody is checking up on me, nobody is coming, I don’t know where they are, I’m still itching, I feel dizzy, I don’t feel well’.”

As reported earlier this week, following her death, Laimou, also known as Lemos, had earlier survived breast cancer. It has since emerged, according to the family, that the clinic she went to on 10 September was Leaders in Oncology Care (LOC), where she had previously had chemotherapy.

Although born in the UK, she is part of the wealthy Lemos family, one of the biggest families in the Greek shipping industry. They are reportedly now planning to take legal action following the sudden death.

The tragic circumstances began after Laimou had recently returned from a summer holiday with her family on the Greek resort island of Porto Cheli, it has been reported.

She first started feeling unwell and recorded a high fever of 39C on the night of 9 September, but despite calling for an ambulance, she decided she would wait till the morning to seek further medical help.

The next day, still feeling unwell, she went to LOC, where medics, after taking blood tests, sent her to UCLH, the family say. After being discharged at 6.30pm on 10 September, she was found dead the next day, it is said.

Laimou was involved in theatre production after studying musical theatre in New York and going to the University of Arizona.

Earlier this year, she had played a leading role in a production of Romeo and Juliet in London and was reportedly preparing for a new production of Oliver.

Marissa’s great-aunt Chrysanthi told Parapolitika: “The entire family is shocked by the sudden death of the daughter of Diamantis and Bessie Laimou. She was a very kind girl, quiet, educated, cultured, modest and simple. She loved art and theatre – she was involved in theatre.”

The Inner West London Coroner’s Court confirmed to The Independent that the death of Laimou had been referred to the court. An inquest has yet to be opened.

A UCLH spokesperson said: “We were extremely sad to hear of the death of Marissa Lemos. We offer our deep condolences to her family and friends at this sad and difficult time.

“We have initiated an internal investigation, as is the normal process for an unexpected death. We await the result of the post-mortem, and we will provide any information required from the coroner’s court.”

The Independent has also contacted the LOC for comment.

What to expect from Heathrow’s ‘Redefine Your Beauty’ experiences

As someone who’s regularly jetting off to different corners of the globe for work, to me the airport has come to represent just a means to an end: Pret, security queue, working charging socket. After years of this, I’ve pretty much got my routine on lockdown, which usually involves some purely functional eating, a quick pint in Spoons, and a last-minute visit to Duty Free to buy a moisturiser because I forgot mine, again.

So, when I heard Heathrow was rolling out a new experiential beauty and wellness campaign across all four terminals, with pop-up beauty bars, luxury treatments and skincare tech that tells you things about your face you didn’t even know were possible, I was curious. Airports are not where I usually go to feel (or look) my best. But a quick massage and some free beauty advice before a flight? Oh, go on then.

I’m due to fly out of Terminal 5 soon, which means I’ll get to check out the Personal Shopper Lounge and see what the hype is about. There’s a full-on treatment menu, the kind you’d expect at a boutique spa, except here, it’s been designed for travellers on the move, like me, with treatments lasting between 10 and 20 minutes. How often can you say an airport is offering La Mer facials, Elemis LED masks, Molton Brown hand massages and Estée Lauder’s ‘Age Reversal Sculpt Ritual’ facial? From neck and shoulder massages to cryotherapy and ultrasonic peels, it’s the kind of thing you’d usually have to schedule weeks in advance, and here it is, just a stone’s throw from your departure gate. I might even consider swapping my pre-flight pint for something a little more restorative.

Outside the lounge, the terminals are set to be abuzz with pop-up beauty bars from brands like Charlotte Tilbury, MAC, Molton Brown and Penhaligon’s – offering live demos, free mini-treatments and genuinely helpful skincare advice. There’s even a skin analysis station (powered by tech that looks like it comes from the year 3000), and perfume engraving on the spot. Fancy.

I wasn’t planning to splurge £200 on more beauty products,​​ but it’s hard to resist when there’s a free luxury beauty bag up for grabs when you do, packed with products from Elizabeth Arden, Versace, Benefit, Amouage and Elemis, to name a few. The offer’s available in all the main World Duty Free stores, and if you’re a Heathrow Rewards member, you can earn double points on qualifying beauty buys (up to 1,000 points), which definitely makes me feel a little better about splashing the cash.

Even the food spots are jumping on board with the wellness vibes. I usually go for a failsafe Joe & The Juice Tunacado, but I’ve spotted a Clean Green smoothie at Jones the Grocer and a Firecracker Chicken Salad from Leon. I might even grab a poké bowl from YO! Sushi for the flight, although word on the street is the plane meal is steamed seabream with romesco.

I never thought I’d describe an airport experience as relaxing and rejuvenating, but this campaign is definitely out to challenge me. Between the luxurious treatments and nutritious food choices, Heathrow has created the first airport rendezvous that won’t leave you feeling like you need a holiday from your holiday.

If you find yourself passing through Heathrow between now and early October, don’t just bolt straight to your gate. Give yourself an extra 30 minutes, book yourself in for a quick massage or facial, and visit World Duty Free to grab that beauty bag full of goodies to make your holiday that little bit more special.

Find out more about Heathrow’s Redefine Your Beauty campaign, including treatment menus, participating brands and exclusive offers here

Man dies after falling from hot air balloon

A man has died after falling from a hot air balloon.

He was reported to have fallen at about 9.20am on Friday near Newpound Common, Wisborough Green, West Sussex.

After a search, his body was found in a field at about 1.50pm.

Formal identification has yet to take place and the death is not being treated as suspicious.

It is understood he had been on a flight from Billingshurst to Dunsfold, Surrey.

A Sussex Police spokesperson said: “Police were called to a report of a man having fallen from a hot air balloon near Newpound Common, Wisborough Green, just after 9.20am on Friday (September 19).

“Following an extensive search the body of a man was sadly found in a field at 1.50pm.

“The search was carried out by neighbourhood officers, police drones, search officers and dogs.

“The man had been among a group of people on a balloon flight from Billingshurst to Dunsfold.

“Police have yet to formerly identify the man.

“An investigation is taking place as to the circumstances and at this time the incident is not being treated as suspicious.”

Two ambulance workers arrested amid investigation into six deaths

Two ambulance service workers have been arrested as part of a major two-year investigation into six deaths in Wiltshire.

Police said a man in his 30s was arrested last year on suspicion of six counts of gross negligence manslaughter and four counts of ill-treatment or wilful neglect by a care worker.

In March this year, A 59-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.

Detective Chief Inspector Phil Walker said: “We can confirm that a major investigation is underway relating to several adult deaths in and around Wiltshire.

“This investigation has been ongoing since an initial report was made to Wiltshire Police in 2023 and detailed enquiries have been undertaken since to ascertain the facts.

“In June 2024, we arrested a man in his 30s from West Wiltshire on suspicion of six counts of gross negligence manslaughter and four counts of ill-treatment or wilful neglect by a care worker.

“In addition, in March this year, we arrested a 59-year-old woman on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.”

Both individuals, who were employed by the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT), have been released on bail while the investigation continues.

The force said it is focusing on supporting the families of those who have died.

A South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said: “As soon as the trust became aware of any concerns, we immediately initiated an internal investigation which resulted in a prompt police referral, and we have been working closely with them as part of the ongoing investigation.

“Two members of staff were suspended.

“The suspension of the two members of staff meant that they were immediately relieved of all duties, including the treatment of patients.

“We would like to reassure people that this is an isolated situation and there is no ongoing risk to patients.

“Please continue to call 999 in a life-threatening emergency.

“One of the two individuals that were initially suspended is no longer employed by the trust.

“Due to the ongoing investigation, there will be no further comment at this stage.”

The Care Quality Commission told The Independent they were aware of the police investigation, but are not currently involved.

The trust’s last inspection by the watchdog found the organisation to be “good”.

The report stated: “Our rating of the trust improved. We rated it as good overall because: Caring was rated as outstanding.

“Effective, responsive and well-led were rated as good. Both effective and well-led improved from requires improvement at our 2016 inspection with responsive remaining as good.

“Well-led at trust level was rated as good. However, safe remained as requires improvement.