While some hope that progress can be made in the last three weeks of Donald Trump’s presidency, families now also hope that the next government will continue efforts to secure the freedom of their relatives. Biden’s team pledged to “work tirelessly” to bring families together.
For the relatives of these individuals, each day brings more anguish and concern. Some have been separated for years, missing birthdays and holidays, the birth of grandchildren and other important milestones.
“We have an empty chair for my father and now we are reaching four years of that empty chair. And hopefully, knowing that President-elect Biden cares about families, we expect him to care for the families of the detainees in a proactive and aggressive way try to bring them home, “he said.
His sister, Maryam Kamalmaz, told CNN that “they still hope that the Trump administration will be productive until the last day, but we hope that the Biden administration will be able to pick up exactly where the Trump administration left off.”
Marc and Debra Tice, parents of journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in Syria in 2012, told CNN that their request to the U.S. government remains the same, regardless of who is in charge.
“Our appeal is simple: we ask the governments of the Syrian Arab Republic and the United States to make every possible diplomatic effort to bring Austin home safely,” they said.
Some of the Trump administration’s efforts to free the Americans have been publicly reported. Two senior government officials engaged in rare direct talks in Damascus as part of an effort to secure the release of Americans like Tice and Kamalmaz, who are believed to be detained by the Assad regime.
‘I know it’s taking its toll’
“I have no higher priority in what remains of the Trump administration than defending Paul (Whelan) and doing everything we can to free him,” said Sullivan last week, but noted that “we also need a willing interlocutor to get involved. in discussions about what would be remotely possible and acceptable, something an American president could agree on. “
His mother, Paula Reed, said he was told the ball is in Russia’s side with respect to Trevor’s release. In the meantime, she is concerned for her son’s well-being, telling CNN that she “can already hear a change in her personality” during her phone calls.
“He’s not the carefree type of guy, although he always makes a point of telling me he’s okay and not worrying about him, I just can, I know this is taking its toll,” she said.
Elizabeth Whelan told CNN that she is also concerned about the continuation of her brother’s arrest.
“We want to give the Trump administration every opportunity to come up with something, to work on something with the Russian authorities before the end of President Trump’s term, but this is approaching very quickly,” she said, noting that the apparent lack of movement the case is “extremely worrying”.
“Every day that passes is another day in Paul’s life that he is spending in a Russian prison without guilt,” she said.
‘Extremely difficult to solve’
Peter Bergen, vice president of New America and national security analyst at CNN, noted the complexity of some of the cases, such as Tice’s, that are “extremely difficult to resolve”, regardless of government, due to other complicating factors, such as considerations broader policies. “There are other foreign policy issues that may be bigger than the hostage release issue,” said Bergen.
However, Bergen noted that “there is a kind of long and honorable tradition in America, around questions about hostages and type of counterterrorism in general, where there is a lot of agreement between Republicans and Democrats about what to do and who should do it. “
Bergen also told CNN, “the way the government deals with hostage families is noticeably better than it was in the middle of the Obama administration,” when President Barack Obama faced harsh criticism for handling the cases of journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and aid workers Kayla Mueller and Peter Kassig. All four were arrested and murdered by ISIS in Syria, and their deaths led to a 2015 review of US hostage policy.
“Mr. Biden knows us. He and all of America felt the horror with us when journalist James Foley was kidnapped, brutally tortured and murdered by ISIS, and when Bob Levinson was taken hostage by the Iranian regime and arrested, without contact with the world. abroad for 13 long years “, they wrote.
“Our families have known President Biden’s compassion since his time in Congress and as Vice President,” they continued. “But we also believe that he and the American public will agree that more could have been done to bring Jim, Bob and many others alive home. Much more work remains.”
The two said it was “essential to ensure continuity whenever possible, including a joint review with the outgoing government of all active cases of Americans held hostage and held unfairly abroad” to “ensure that no momentum or information is lost”.
His article featured a series of requests, including the quick appointment of the Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs, the Senior Director of Counterterrorism of the National Security Council and the Director of the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, and “that any agreements made with entities foreigners put the recovery of Americans in the front and center, not as an afterthought. “
Executive Director of the Foley Foundation, Margaux Ewen, told CNN that they should meet with national security adviser Jake Sullivan next week.
‘We will work tirelessly’
Many of the families who spoke to CNN expressed optimism about the continued efforts to free their loved ones.
She said she was told “that the biggest goal here is to keep as much momentum as possible and keep it going during the transition and that this plan seems to be working and that there are promising signs that the new team attaches so much value to my freedom. of the family as the current administration has. “
Transition spokesman Ned Price told CNN that “the Biden-Harris administration will have no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans – both at home and around the world.”
“We will work tirelessly to reunite unjustly detained Americans against their will with their families and other loved ones,” said Price.
Many of the officials who work in hostage and detainee cases are career civil servants, but some – such as the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs (SPEHA) – are named politicians.
The families that spoke to CNN praised the current special envoy, Roger Carstens, with some saying they would like to see him continue in office after Biden takes office, at least on a provisional basis. A source close to Carstens indicated that he would be willing to stay.
“Our goal has been and always will be to support the families of unjust US hostages and detainees with all the resources and tools available,” said Carstens.