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U.S. Welcomes Return Home of Mark Frerichs
The United States welcomes the safe return of Mark Frerichs, an American Navy veteran who spent more than two and a half years in captivity in Afghanistan. His release, said President Joe Biden, is the culmination of years of work by dedicated public servants across the government along with other partners around the world, including the Qatari government.
Secretary of State Blinken underscored the United States commitment to bring home all U.S. nationals who are being arbitrarily detained or held hostage anywhere in the world:
“We bring the same determination and focus to those efforts as we brought to the effort to bring Mark Frerichs out of captivity and home to his loved ones. For the United States, there is no higher priority than bringing Americans who are being arbitrarily and unjustly detained, held hostage, back home to freedom, to their families.”
President Biden reaffirmed that his “administration continues to prioritize the safe return of all Americans who are held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad, and we will not stop until they are reunited with their families.” He added, “We have much more work to do in many other cases, but Mark’s release demonstrates our enduring commitment. Like our work to free Americans held in Burma, Haiti, Russia, Venezuela, and elsewhere, it is our duty to do all we can to bring our people home.”