“We [the United States] have a broader policy with respect to hostages around the world, we don’t make concessions to terrorists and to hostage takers, we don’t pay ransom,” Rice said on Friday. “We are nonetheless in the process of doing a review of our hostage policy… with respect to how we can support and be more responsive to the needs of for example the families that are suffering so enormously when a loved one is in that circumstance.”
Dealing with hostage victim’s families is an aspect of the hostage policy the US President Barack Obama believes can be improved upon, and the United States is trying to learn from its partner countries such as the United Kingdom, Rice said.
“We’re trying to learn from the experience of families themselves and so part of this effort is to be in broad communication with them, and ask them what it is that you have experienced what has not worked for you and how within the confines of that broad new concession policy might be better,” Rice said.
In November, White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said that despite a review of the US hostage policy, Washington would not pay ransoms for Americans held hostage overseas.
The United States’ policy review comes as the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization has increasingly relied for its actions on funding from ransom payments. However, the United States officials have said that not paying hostage ransom is an important part of its strategy to defeat the Islamic State.
The Islamic State has recently executed several hostages including Kenji Goto and Haruna Yukawa of Japan, and Muath al-Kasaesbeh of Jordan.
