In 1986, kidnappers in Lebanon released the Reverend Lawrence Martin Jenco, an American hostage held for nearly 19 months.

CNN: Friday,

He had been the last and the longest-held American hostage in Lebanon.

NEWYORKER: Hellhole

"The American people are held hostage to the selfish political interests of partisans on both sides, " says Hofmeister, the former Shell chief executive.

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Other lawsuits have been filed against the FARC in federal court, records show -- including a pending 2009 case seeking damages filed by three American contractors who were held hostage by the guerrilla group.

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But a more rational American policy should not be held hostage to an immediate response.

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But the Iran hostage crisis played a huge role because the American people were horrified that our fellow citizens were being held hostage, number one.

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Anderson told the story of Frank Reed, a fifty-four-year-old American private-school director who was taken hostage and held in solitary confinement for four months before being put in with Anderson.

NEWYORKER: Hellhole

American hostage Jill Carroll has been freed in Baghdad after being held for nearly three months.

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