Brit danger tourist feared murdered by Taliban is 'alive and living in luxury'
A Brit infamous for travelling to some of the world's most-dangerous locations is alive and living a life of luxury after befriending his Taliban captors.
Miles Routledge, a 23-year-old from Birmingham, was feared dead after his social media accounts went silent when he was captured by Taliban warlords in Afghanistan in March. But Miles, also known as Lord Miles on YouTube, is safe, well and may be on the brink of a lucrative gold mine deal with Taliban "higher ups", according to a "trusted friend" who speaks with him regularly. He has also attended a number of "picnics and dinners" with the Taliban bigwigs after his arrest.
On March 2, he was seized alongside two Polish nationals by the former militia that now controls Afghanistan. Since then, his social media accounts have been near silent, but it is now claimed that he has been communicating regularly with loved ones. Through Lord Miles' Twitter account, the friend updated his followers, saying: "Miles is in a guesthouse and not an actual prison so he's very comfortable."
The friend, who did not reveal his identity, added that the "prison" is more like a hotel than a jail, where he has access to an Xbox, his own servant, and can even dial out for takeaways. If the "prisoner" fancies eggs for tea, his servants go out and "buy him eggs". If he doesn't like the dish they make, they get him pizza instead, the friend claimed.
The friend said that Miles is being treated so well because the Taliban are fans of his book and think he's a "goofy guy". In the Twitter thread, the pal acknowledged that him being unable to share photos of Miles may spark speculation that he's dead, but people have "no idea what Lord Miles is capable of thriving in", he claimed.
Taliban bans contraception with chemists ordered to clear their shelves of stockIn the first update Miles' followers have had in months, he continued: "At first, like all of you, I was worried he was struggling in some bad place but then he described how the Taliban like the Titanic movie and Rambo 3." And Miles has plenty to keep in prison while incarcerated as he's reportedly working on his second book, which is titled: "Lord Miles' holiday in Taliban prison".
The friend, who provided no further proof that he wasn't a Taliban operative himself, claimed that when he called Miles, he told him it had been a "lovely holiday". Miles added: "I’ll consider British ambassador to Afghanistan if the King asks nicely".'
And his "imprisonment" has not prevented his main line of work, which is shooting YouTube videos. His next step is to travel to New York City after being made extremely wealthy through the gold mine. The friend did not provide further details about the gold deal, or whether Miles will be working down the mines.
The 23-year-old was last seen in a photograph dated March 8, in which he is flanked by a Taliban fighter and making a "thumbs up" pose. The photo was captioned with a message in which Miles downplayed the seriousness of his situation as he was captured by a regime well-known for shocking human rights abuses against prisoners, including extrajudicial killings and torture.
He wrote: "Yo guys, been taken by Afghan intelligence for taking like $1,000 (£825) out of Western Union (sus amount). No internet, no idea when this will send, everything is good but please excuse my lack of communication."