<\/p>\n
Dennis\u00a0Coyle, center, an American academic, was released by Afghanistan’s Taliban government after more than a year in captivity. After reaching the U.S., he was flown to San Antonio to enter a reintegration program for ex-prisoners at Brooke Army Medical Center.<\/p>\n
Eric Gay\/Associated Press<\/p>\n
Dennis\u00a0Coyle, center, an American academic, was released by Afghanistan’s Taliban government after more than a year in captivity. After reaching the U.S., he was flown to San Antonio to enter a reintegration program for ex-prisoners at Brooke Army Medical Center.<\/p>\n
Eric Gay\/Associated Press<\/p>\n
An American researcher freed from captivity in Afghanistan was flown back to the United States on Wednesday \u2014 and brought straight to San Antonio to enter a program at Brooke Army Medical Center that helps ex-prisoners<\/a>\u00a0reintegrate into society.<\/p>\n Dennis Coyle, 64, worked in Afghanistan for more than 20 years studying languages. He was taken into custody by the country\u2019s\u00a0Taliban leaders in January 2025 and held in what his family described as \u201cnear-solitary conditions.\u201d He was never charged with a crime. Afghanistan\u2019s leader, Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada, ordered him freed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Earlier this month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio designated Afghanistan a \u201cstate sponsor of wrongful detention\u201d and accused the Taliban government of \u201ckidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions.\u201d U.S. officials warned the Taliban of possible American military action if Afghanistan did not release Americans held in captivity.<\/p>\n RELATED:\u00a0WNBA star Brittney Griner was treated at Army reintegration center in San Antonio<\/a><\/p>\n A spokesman for Brooke Army Medical Center confirmed that Coyle, who is\u00a0originally from Colorado, had been brought to the military hospital at Fort Sam Houston.<\/p>\n It\u2019s standard U.S. government practice for former POWs, freed hostages and others released by hostile governments to go to BAMC for evaluation, counseling and recovery.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n BAMC\u2019s reintegration program is staffed by physicians, psychiatrists, physical therapists and other specialists. It dates to the end of the Vietnam War, when returning POWs needed help coping with the trauma they\u2019d endured.<\/p>\n Former captives who have gone through the program include Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich<\/a>, who spent 16 months in a Russian prison; \u201cHotel Rwanda\u201d hero Paul Rusesabagina, who was kidnapped and imprisoned by the Rwandan government for more than two years;\u00a0WNBA star Brittney Griner<\/a>, a Houston native and two-time Olympic gold medalist who was held in a Russian penal colony; and\u00a0Pvt. Travis T. King<\/a>, a GI who was detained by North Korea for 70 days after illegally entering that country.<\/p>\n What\u2019s the aim of the treatment?<\/p>\n It seeks to help former POWs and hostages overcome the debilitating effects of captivity and isolation and return to their professional, community and family lives with as few complications as possible.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a very complicated joint operation involving hundreds of people,\u201d according to an Army document describing the program. \u201cOperational planners, aircrews, medical professionals, security officers, attorneys, chaplains, and specialists in finance, personnel, public affairs and logistics are involved in these operations. Family members also assist in the process, at first through phone contacts and later during family reunions.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe process is about helping the returnee gain control of his emotions,\u201d a Pentagon spokesman, Army Col. Steve Warren, has said. \u201cOne of the methods the psychologists use to help the returnee is to allow him to tell his story.\u201d<\/p>\n How does it work?<\/p>\n According to the Army, there are three phases. The first, Initial Recovery, begins when the hostage or POW is returned to U.S. custody. They\u2019re given a medical examination and a psychological assessment.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The second phase, Transition Location, happens once they arrive at BAMC. They undergo a more thorough medical exam, have formal debriefings and are guided through \u201cpsychological decompression.\u201d<\/p>\n In phase three, called Home Base, the former captives meet with their families to \u201caddress significant closure issues that may have arisen from their captivity,\u201d according to the Army.<\/p>\n Who else has been treated there?<\/p>\n Perhaps the most famous of the facility\u2019s alumni is Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the sole American prisoner of war held by the Taliban in Afghanistan. He was treated at\u00a0BAMC in 2014.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban after walking off his post. He\u00a0spent 1,797 days in captivity, and testimony revealed that he\u2019d been chained for long periods to a box spring.<\/p>\n At BAMC, Bergdahl was encouraged to talk about his ordeal. He was later booted out of the Army for desertion.<\/p>\n In August 2024, Gershkovich and two other U.S. citizens \u2014 former Marine Paul Whelan and radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva \u2014 were brought to BAMC after being freed from imprisonment in Russia.<\/p>\n Gershkovich,\u00a0Whelan and Kurmasheva, an editor for Radio Free Europe\/Radio Liberty, gained their freedom in an elaborate prisoner swap involving seven countries and the release of 24 prisoners in all, 16 held by Russia and eight by Western governments.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n In 2008, Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell\u00a0\u2014 employees of defense contractor Northrup Grumman\u00a0\u2014 went to BAMC after being held captive in Colombia by a guerrilla group for more than five years.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n