Despite advances under Obama, lack of transparency can hinder hostage families
When it comes to negotiating hostage releases from terrorist networks, the United States’ “no-concessions” policy puts many decisions in the hands of the families, leaving them wondering what to do.
Watch 7:21
Payment to Iran was used as ‘leverage’ for hostage release, admits State Department
In January, Iran released American hostages in a development coinciding with a U.S. payout of $400 million -- money that had been owed for decades. The Obama administration previously denied a connection between the two events, but on Friday, the…
Watch 6:14
Cameroon, Nigeria join forces to free Boko Haram hostages
Hundreds of hostages held by the Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram were freed over the weekend after a joint raid by Cameroonian and Nigerian forces. The raid followed increased U.S. military efforts to cooperate with regional governments against the jihadist…
Watch 5:10
The White House cleared the path for the families of hostages to be able to pay ransom, and offered other changes for how the government handles hostage cases. Chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Warner gets reaction from Michael Scott Moore,…
As the number of American hostage deaths have surged in the past year, some families have spoken out about being threatened with prosecution for considering paying ransom and feeling stonewalled by the government. Judy Woodruff reports on the White House’s…
President Barack Obama announced a retooled hostage policy aimed at correcting the sense many families have that the government has let them down, he said Wednesday. One hostage family responds.
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama is clearing the way for families of U.S. hostages to pay ransom to terror groups without fear of prosecution, as the White House seeks to address criticism from those whose loved ones have been killed…
Just how effective and precise can drone warfare be in fighting terrorists? Judy Woodruff talks to Greg Miller of the Washington Post about how the U.S. government deploys so-called “signature strikes” and the risk they pose to civilians.
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