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1 1 (August 31, 2015)

handle is hein.crs/govccxy0001 and id is 1 raw text is: U.S. Hostage Policy: Recent Developments August 31, 2015 On June 24, 2015, President Barack Obama issued Executive Order (EO) 13698, Hostage Recovery Activities, and Presidential Policy Directive (PPD) 30, US. Nationals Taken Hostage Abroad and Personnel Recovery Efforts. The President also announced the release of an interagency Report on US. Hostage Policy, which reviewed U.S. responses to overseas hostage-takings and identified two dozen key findings and recommendations. Some security observers see these documents as reflecting a shift in the nation's hostage policy. EO 13698, PPD 30, and the Hostage Policy Report were the culmination of a review ordered by President Obama, following the video-captured beheadings of U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff by the Islamic State in late August and early September 2014. Subsequent high-profile incidents further revealed challenges in current hostage policy, including the deaths of U.S. humanitarian aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller, who were killed while detained by the Islamic State; U.S. photojournalist Luke Somers, who was killed during a mission to rescue him from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP); and U.S. development contractor Warren Weinstein, who was unintentionally killed in a drone strike in Pakistan. See Figure 1 for longer-term trends related to hostage taken incidents, worldwide. The U.S. hostage policy review team concluded that shifting dynamics associated with recent overseas hostage- takings necessitated a reconsideration. Simply put, our approach has not kept up with this changed environment, the June Hostage Policy Report stated. In addition, former U.S. hostages and families of recent hostages had criticized aspects of the U.S. government's response and outreach. Media reports revealed that the Director of Counterterrorism at the National Security Council had warned families that they risked criminal prosecution if they paid ransoms to terrorists. The June Hostage Policy Report confirmed that official communications with families of hostages and other external stakeholders were often ad hoc and suffered from a lack of coordinated, consistent, and accurate information sharing. Although there is no public list of U.S. citizens currently held hostage overseas, Homeland Security Advisor Lisa Monaco stated in June that more than 30 kidnapped Americans are still detained abroad. The State Department's Country Reports on Terrorism 2014 listed 12 private U.S. citizens kidnapped overseas in 2013 by terrorists. The report also described 11 foreign terrorist organizations that are partially funded by kidnapping ransoms: Abu Sayyaf Group, Boko Haram, Haqqani Network, Islamic State, Al-Mulathamun Battalion, National Liberation Army, Al-Nusrah Front, AQAP, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan. Figure I. Hostage Taken Incidents, Worldwide .' i ........................................................................................................ .A t , .. A . . ... ... . Source: University of Maryland, National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, Global Terrorism Database, last updated June 2015. With the issuance of EO 13698, President Obama directed the establishment of a Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell (HRFC), an interagency entity to coordinate operational- level hostage recovery efforts; a Hostage Response Group (HRG) to support National Security Council strategy development and policy implementation; and a Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs within the State Department to lead diplomatic engagement on hostage policy and recovery efforts. EO 13698 also establishes a Family Engagement Coordinator within the HRFC to facilitate all interactions with hostages' families. PPD 30 and its classified annex reorganize the U.S. government to respond to overseas hostage-takings in a more coordinated manner through the HRG, HRFC, and through a new Intelligence Community Issue Manager for Hostage Affairs in Office of the Director of National Intelligence. It emphasizes improved family engagement through proactive information sharing. Concurrent with PPD 30's release, the Justice Department confirmed that it has never prosecuted a hostage's family or friends for paying ransoms. PPD 30 also commits to improved support to the families of hostages and to returned hostages. The Directive also asserts the U.S. government's ability to leverage all instruments of national power, including unilateral action to protect U.S. nationals and U.S. interests under extraordinary circumstances. Deterrence efforts include aggressive interdiction, investigation, and prosecution of hostage-takers, as well as sanctions designations. To improve hostage prevention and recovery efforts, PPD 30 emphasizes enhanced cooperation with foreign governments, international organizations, and the p\w -- , gnom go mppm qq\ a , q 'S I 11LIANJILiN,

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