Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities announced on Wednesday the death of Jibra’il Omar, formerly known as Timothy Weeks, an Australian academic who had been kidnapped and held hostage by the group for over three years before his release in 2019. Omar reportedly passed away due to cancer.
Omar, an English teacher at the American University in Kabul, was abducted in 2016 alongside an American colleague. Both were freed in 2019 as part of a prisoner exchange involving three senior members of the Haqqani Network, a Taliban ally.
The Afghan Interior Ministry confirmed his death in a statement:
“Unfortunately, Australian lecturer Timothy Weeks, currently named Jibra’il Omar, passed away today due to cancer. He had been suffering from this condition for a long time.”
Life After Release
Following his release, Omar embraced Islam and returned to Kabul in 2022, a year after the Taliban regained power. At the time, he described his return as a way to “celebrate” the Taliban’s victory, according to ABC Australia.
The Afghan Interior Ministry paid tribute to Omar’s affection for Afghanistan, stating:
“Jibra’il Omar worked as an English teacher in Kabul. He was very fond of Afghanistan and the Islamic Emirate and chose to live in Kabul. He traveled to various provinces and deepened his understanding of Islam.”
Tributes from the Taliban
Anas Haqqani, a senior Taliban official who had been part of the same 2019 prisoner exchange that freed Omar, shared a tribute on social media. He posted a photo of the two together and praised Omar’s connection to Afghanistan and Islam:
“He stayed with us, dressed in Afghan attire, and walked the streets of this land, for the bond of faith and belief holds deeper meaning than any other connection.”
Condolences have been extended to Omar’s family and friends for their loss.
