Mark Frerichs
Born (1962-07-13) July 13, 1962
DisappearedJanuary 31, 2020 (aged 57)
Kabul, Afghanistan
StatusReturned to the United States in September 2022
NationalityAmerican
OccupationCivil engineer
Known forKidnapped by the Haqqani network

Mark Randall Frerichs (born July 13, 1962)[1] is an American civil engineer and former US Navy diver[2][3] who disappeared in Afghanistan in January 2020 and was later confirmed to be captured by the Haqqani network, a group closely aligned with the Taliban.[4][5][6] In September 2022, Frerichs was released by the Taliban-led government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in exchange for Bashir Noorzai.

Biography

Frerichs is a director of International Logistical Support whose work had led him to visit Afghanistan multiple times since 2012.[5] He served in the United States Navy as a diver.[7]

Frerichs disappeared in Kabul, Afghanistan, on January 31, 2020. The Associated Press reported that US intelligence officials tracked Frerichs's cell phone and raided a village near where he disappeared, approximately a week after his disappearance. Although they rounded up individuals from that village, the raid proved unproductive.[7] The next month, Newsweek magazine reported that officials had confirmed that Frerichs had been taken captive by the Haqqani network, a group closely aligned with the Taliban.[5]

Frerichs's sister, Charlene Cakora, questioned why the US government "signed a peace deal" with the Taliban in early February 2020 that did not include a provision for releasing her brother.[7] The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the lead agency of the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, issued a statement saying the cell was working to ensure "that Mark Frerichs and all Americans held hostage abroad are returned home."

On May 10, 2020, the FBI offered a $1-million reward for information that helps lead to Frerichs's release or rescue.[4] In addition, the Rewards for Justice Program offered a $5-million reward for information leading to his location.[8] That same day, Taliban spokesmen asserted that they had conducted an inquiry of their subordinate and associated groups and confirmed they were not holding Frerichs.[9]

The New York Times reported Frerichs was still a captive on November 21, 2020, when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo traveled to Afghanistan to personally participate in peace negotiations with the Taliban.[10] They reported it was unknown whether Pompeo raised Frerichs's captivity as an issue during the talks.

On April 1, 2022, a video was released showing Frerichs pleading for help.[11] Following the release of Safi Rauf, an American aid worker who was held captive by the Taliban between December 2021 and April 2022, the US State Department began an attempted inquiry into the release of Frerichs. The inquiry did not result in substantial headway in brokering Frerichs' release.[12] Frerichs's family was a part of the Bring Our Families Home campaign.[13]

On September 19, 2022, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told reporters in Kabul that his government and a US delegation swapped prisoners at the Afghan capital's airport. Frerichs was exchanged for Bashir Noorzai.[14][15][2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Mark Randall Frerichs". Federal Bureau of Investigation.
  2. 1 2 Akbary, Yaqoob; Goldbaum, Christina (September 19, 2022). "U.S. Hostage Exchanged for Afghan Drug Lord in Prisoner Swap". The New York Times. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  3. ↑ Sweet, Lynn; Dudek, Mitch (September 20, 2022). "Sister of Lombard man freed by Taliban in hostage swap 'stunned, very happy' after 3 a.m. call from Biden". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  4. 1 2 James Gordon Meek; Conor Finnegan (May 12, 2020). "FBI offers $1 million for information leading to former Taliban hostage's captors". ABC News. Retrieved May 13, 2020. At least two Americans remain missing in Afghanistan, including commercial contractor Mark Frerichs, who was kidnapped on Jan. 31 by the Haqqani Network, a faction of the Afghan Taliban, U.S. officials believe.
  5. 1 2 3 James Laporta; Tom O'Connor; Naveed Jamali (February 5, 2020). "Exclusive: U.S. citizen kidnapped by Taliban group in Afghanistan". Newsweek magazine. Retrieved May 13, 2020. Mark R. Frerichs of Lombard, Illinois, was kidnapped last Friday in Khost, a province located in the southeastern part of the country that borders the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, an underdeveloped region between Afghanistan and Pakistan, U.S. officials told Newsweek, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the details publicly.
  6. ↑ Susan Sarkauskas; Robert Sanchez (February 6, 2020). "Kidnapped contractor's Lombard dad: I have deep faith my son will be found". Daily Herald. Archived from the original on February 7, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2020. While no group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, U.S. officials believe the Taliban-aligned Haqqani network orchestrated the operation.
  7. 1 2 3 James LaPorta; Eric Tucker (April 30, 2020). "Navy SEALs raided Afghan village in attempt to locate Illinois man taken hostage by militants". Chicago Tribune. Washington, DC. Retrieved May 13, 2020. In the days following the capture of an American contractor in Afghanistan earlier this year, Navy commandos raided a village and detained suspected members of the Taliban-linked Haqqani network while the U.S. intelligence community tried to track the cellphones of the man and his captors, The Associated Press has learned.
  8. ↑ "Rewards for Justice - Acts of Terror - Kidnapping of Mark Randall Frerichs".
  9. ↑ "Taliban: We do not have missing US contractor". Arab News. Islamabad. May 10, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2020. Taliban leaders searched their ranks, including in the much-feared Haqqani network, and on Sunday said they are not holding Mark R. Frerichs, a Navy veteran turned contractor who disappeared in Afghanistan in late January.
  10. ↑ Thomas Gibbons-Neff; Fatima Faizi (November 21, 2020). "As Pompeo Prepared to Meet Afghan Warring Parties, New Attack Struck Kabul". The New York Times. Kabul, Afghanistan. p. A18. Retrieved November 21, 2020. The Taliban is still holding the American Mark Frerichs, a former Navy diver and civil engineer who was kidnapped in Kabul and taken to Khost Province earlier this year.
  11. ↑ "A New Video Shows a Missing American Hostage Pleading for Help in Taliban Custody". The New Yorker. April 2022.
  12. ↑ Tapper, Jake (April 3, 2022). "Biden administration secures release of Afghan-American Naval reservist held by Taliban". ABC7 Chicago. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  13. ↑ Turner, Tasha (July 22, 2022). "Ottumwa native creates art to bring awareness to American hostages, detainees". KTVO. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Taliban Free Last American Hostage in Afghanistan in Prisoner Swap". VOA. September 19, 2022. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Mark Frerichs: US hostage swapped for Afghan leader linked to Taliban". BBC News. September 19, 2022. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
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