David Rohde

When journalist Peter Theo Curtis was released from captivity on Sunday, the US was quick to announce that “no ransom was paid.” So what was behind the negotiations between the government of Qatar and Curtis’ captor’s the Nusra Front?

If you’re being held hostage by terrorists overseas and you’re French or Spanish, there’s a good chance your government will find a way to free you — by paying a ransom through indirect means. If you’re American or British, your best bet is to try and escape — or hope for a daring military raid.

James Foley’s kidnapping and murder is a sad trend in the war in Syria, but it’s paying off for terrorist groups. They’ve collected millions of dollars in ransoms, and journalist David Rohde, who spent seven months in Taliban captivity, says current kidnapping policies aren’t keeping journalists safe.

Hours after Ambassador Richard Holbrooke died, it was reported that his last words, spoken to his surgeon, were, ‘You’ve got to stop this war in Afghanistan.’ David Rohde, co-author of ‘A Rope and a Prayer: A Kidnapping from Two Sides,’ joins us

Journalist David Rohde says his experience as a prisoner of the Taliban in 2008 was easier than what US Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl must have gone through during five years.