In the News

A Republican congressman is introducing legislation to punish countries that take Americans hostage, amid fears about the rising use of the practice as a bargaining chip with the US. “The number of incidents in which American citizens have been taken hostage while traveling abroad is deeply disturbing, and foreign governments that repeatedly engage in this behavior must be held accountable,” Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said in an announcement shared first with Semafor. The bill calls existing policies to hold states accountable for hostage-taking “insufficient” and proposes that countries designated as sponsors of wrongful detention be subject to sanctions and prohibited from receiving foreign assistance. Lawler is facing a tight race for reelection in one of the closest House contests of the 2024 campaign, as Democrats hope to retake the majority.

https://www.semafor.com/newsletter/10/18/2024/principals