US weighs censuring Afghanistan over detained Americans, could ban US travel to the country

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. 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 U.S. 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.

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In addition to making the same determination for Afghanistan, the U.S. could ⁠restrict the use of U.S. passports for travel to Afghanistan, the sources said. ​Such a passport restriction is currently only in place for North Korea.

Rubio warned the ​U.S. could restrict travel to Iran over its detention of U.S. citizens, but has not imposed any restrictions. The U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran the day after announcing the ​determination.

Washington is demanding that Kabul release all U.S. citizens detained in the country, ​including Mahmood Habibi and Dennis Coyle, the sources said. The U.S. 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 U.S. Hostage ​and Wrongful Detainee Day, Rubio said the U.S. would apply ​the new ⁠designation to governments that detain U.S. 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 U.S. considering designating ​Afghanistan as a state sponsor of wrongful detention.

Reporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Lisa Shumaker

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