At least 26 Americans held hostage abroad have been freed since Trump took office. ----------------------------------------- On Jan. 21, 2025, just one day after Trump’s second term began, Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were released from Taliban captivity in Afghanistan. Corbett and his family moved to Afghanistan in 2010, where they lived in Kabul and Jalalabad. According to a website set up by his family, Corbett did work for NGOs, which focused on education, birth and life-saving skills. He also started a project in 2017, Bloom Afghanistan, with the goal of strengthening the country’s private sector. In 2021, the Corbett family evacuated as the Taliban took control of the country. Corbett returned to Afghanistan a year later and was captured by the Taliban, which his family suspects was because of his "value as political leverage." There aren’t many details on McKenty or exactly why he was in Afghanistan. According to the BBC, his family asked for privacy. American-Abducted-Taliban Anastasia Nuhfer, who was detained in Belarus during the Biden administration, gained her freedom Jan. 26, 2025. While Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Nuhfer’s release, he did not give details on when she was detained or why. However, according to The Associated Press, a former high-ranking Belarusian official said the arrest was linked to 2020 protests against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Six unnamed American citizens Special envoy Ric Grenell secured the release of six Americans after meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Grenell posted a photo of himself and the men on a plane and said that they "couldn’t stop thanking" Trump when speaking to him on the phone. The men were not identified. After spending 484 days as a hostage in Gaza, Keith Siegel was released as part of a ceasefire deal Feb. 1, 2025. Siegel was taken from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks. His wife, Aviva, was also taken hostage but was released in November 2023. Aviva and Keith Siegel On April 8, Siegel, who has credited Trump with saving his life, thanked the president during an NRCC event in Washington, D.C. American schoolteacher Marc Fogel was released from Russian captivity Feb. 11, 2025, more than three years after he was detained. Fogel was carrying less than one ounce of medical marijuana, according to his family’s website, which he used for severe pain. The Fogel family criticized former President Joe Biden’s handling of Marc’s case, especially in light of his work to release WNBA player Brittney Griner, who was also arrested for having marijuana. On July 13, 2024, Fogel’s mother, Malphine, attended a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Marc’s hometown. She spoke with Trump, who promised to bring her son home. Marc Fogel, an American history teacher who was detained in Russia, and Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, reacts during President Donald Trump's speech to a joint session of Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., March 4, 2025. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein) Unnamed American On Feb. 12, 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that an American "unjustly detained in Belarus" had been released. The statement did not include details or identifying information about the hostage. In a press release, Rubio affirmed the administration’s commitment to releasing Americans held hostage across the globe. On Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli American Sagui Dekel-Chen was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists from his home at Kibbutz Nir Oz. He was shot in the shoulder during the massacre and endured torture while in captivity. Sagui Dekel-Chen embraces wife Dekel-Chen spent almost 500 days as a hostage in Gaza and gained his freedom in February 2025. While he was in captivity, his wife gave birth to their third child. He only learned about his daughter’s birth after being released. On March 13, 2025, 10 unidentified Americans, including veterans and military contractors, were released from captivity in Kuwait. According to The Associated Press, the American citizens were detained on drug charges. Delta Airlines mechanic George Glezmann spent more than two years as a hostage in Gaza after being detained by the Taliban in December 2022. According to senators John Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both Democrats from Georgia, Glezmann went to "Afghanistan for a five-day trip to explore the cultural landscape and rich history of the country." Adam Boehler with Qatari officials The Taliban released Faye Hall in March 2025, though it is unclear when she was detained. CBS News reported that Hall was arrested on charges of using a drone without authorization. Faye Hall, an American woman who had been detained by the Taliban since February, was released in March. (Diplomatic source in Afghanistan) Russian American ballet dancer Ksenia Karelina was released from detention April 10, 2025, after being wrongfully detained for over a year. Karelina was arrested and sentenced to 12 years in a penal colony after donating approximately $50 to a Ukrainian charity. Ksenia Karelina arrives back in U.S. "Mr. Trump, I’m so, so grateful for you bringing me home," a teary-eyed Karelina said upon her arrival in the U.S. "I never felt more blessed to be American."
One day. President Biden and Vice President Harris welcomed home three Americans, Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva, who were freed from Russian detention as part of a historic prisoner swap in August 2024. Details of the swap: The prisoner exchange involved a total of 24 people from multiple countries and was the largest since the end of the Cold War.
Oligarch control this country, person(s), government whatever silly label is attached to it. A functioning Republic (IMO really a Representative Democracy) we stopped being back in the 80's or so and kicked into high gear with SCOTUS Citizen United ruling absurdity.
who did we send over? the trader and a lawyer, with no trade experience but maga hats China Surrounded Xi’s Aide With Seasoned Experts to Seal US Deal https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...experts-to-seal-us-deal?srnd=phx-economics-v2 China’s surprisingly quick agreement with the US to wind back punitive tariff rates put a spotlight on a Chinese negotiating team that features decades worth of technical trade experience alongside a top aide of President Xi Jinping. The crew engaging with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was on public display for the first time Sunday, with Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang and Vice Finance Minister Liao Min flanking 70-year-old He, in a large wood-paneled press hall at China’s World Trade Organization mission in Geneva. The two vice ministers are veteran negotiators deeply familiar with the technicalities of trade and financial markets, have had years of engagement with Americans, and studied abroad. Their practical expertise combines with political power, as He is China’s top economic czar and a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo. The setup ensures the negotiators have both the authority and competence to hold their ground as talks get tougher, with the clock ticking on a 90-day pause on higher tariffs set to take effect by May 14. Li worked as Beijing’s envoy to the World Trade Organization in Geneva since February 2021. Prior to that, he spent more than 20 years in the Commerce Ministry’s treaty-and-law department, and in divisions in charge of trade barrier-related issues, including anti-dumping probes. That gave him the deepest specific trade experience of anyone yet to hold the trade representative job.