06-24-2015, 12:40 PM
NEW U.S. POLICY ALLOWS NEGOTIATING WITH TERRORISTS
The White House will release on Wednesday a presidential directive and an executive order that will allow the government to communicate and negotiate with terrorist groups holding Americans hostage.
Officials will now be allowed to talk to those terror groups and discuss ways to secure the Americans' release, though the government will maintain its policy of not making "substantive concessions" to captors.
While the government won't pay ransoms, the White House will announce that officials will no longer threaten with criminal prosecution the families of American hostages looking to pay ransoms to their relatives' captors, according to a senior administration official.
President Barack Obama will meet Wednesday with the families of American hostages at the White House before delivering remarks at 12:20 p.m. to announce changes in the administration's hostage policy.
The payment of ransoms to terror groups has long been tolerated in many instances, though it is technically illegal. The administration has looked the other way when families of Americans held overseas have paid ransoms.
But several families -- including the family of James Foley -- have said they were threatened with prosecution as they considered making ransom payments. A member of the National Security Council staff had threatened Foley's family with prosecution during their ordeal.
On Wednesday, the White House will explicitly indicate that families should not fear criminal prosecution if they choose to make ransom payments. The new directive will not include a formal change to existing laws and the longstanding policy against government concessions to hostage takers -- including ransom payments -- will be reiterated.
House Speaker John Boehner on Wednesday said he feared the erosion of the U.S.'s policy of not paying ransoms and the principle of not negotiating with terrorists.
Full Story: http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/23/politi...index.html
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Though I feel terribly for hostages and their families, I share Boehner's concern.
The White House will release on Wednesday a presidential directive and an executive order that will allow the government to communicate and negotiate with terrorist groups holding Americans hostage.
Officials will now be allowed to talk to those terror groups and discuss ways to secure the Americans' release, though the government will maintain its policy of not making "substantive concessions" to captors.
While the government won't pay ransoms, the White House will announce that officials will no longer threaten with criminal prosecution the families of American hostages looking to pay ransoms to their relatives' captors, according to a senior administration official.
President Barack Obama will meet Wednesday with the families of American hostages at the White House before delivering remarks at 12:20 p.m. to announce changes in the administration's hostage policy.
The payment of ransoms to terror groups has long been tolerated in many instances, though it is technically illegal. The administration has looked the other way when families of Americans held overseas have paid ransoms.
But several families -- including the family of James Foley -- have said they were threatened with prosecution as they considered making ransom payments. A member of the National Security Council staff had threatened Foley's family with prosecution during their ordeal.
On Wednesday, the White House will explicitly indicate that families should not fear criminal prosecution if they choose to make ransom payments. The new directive will not include a formal change to existing laws and the longstanding policy against government concessions to hostage takers -- including ransom payments -- will be reiterated.
House Speaker John Boehner on Wednesday said he feared the erosion of the U.S.'s policy of not paying ransoms and the principle of not negotiating with terrorists.
Full Story: http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/23/politi...index.html
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Though I feel terribly for hostages and their families, I share Boehner's concern.