WASHINGTON—The Newseum honored 14 journalists on June 8 for their courage while reporting under hostile conditions, representing all journalists who died in 2014.

Family members and friends of the fallen attended the museum’s annual Journalists Memorial, which recognizes the risks journalists face in getting the news.

“It has been a brutal time for journalists worldwide. Numbers vary, but according to most international media organizations, more than 80 journalists were killed last year,” said Kathy Gannon, an award-winning Associated Press correspondent who was shot at by an Afghan police officer in April of last year while in a car. Her colleague Anja Niedringhaus died in the attack.

Gannon was the recent recipient of the 2014 James Foley Medal for Courage in Journalism awarded by Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.

After her speech Gannon hugged friends, some were teary-eyed.

John Foley, father of the late James Foley, honored his son and all journalists killed last year.

In his last letter addressed to his family in captivity, James wrote: “I know you are thinking of me and praying for me. And I am so thankful. I feel you all especially when I pray. I pray for you to stay strong and to believe. I really feel I can touch you even in this darkness when I pray.”

Islamic State militants beheaded him in August.

“He left his mark as a wonderful human being,” Foley said. “He defended our right to know.”

Islamic State militants also murdered journalist Steven Sotloff in 2014.

While crossing into Syria from Turkey, Sotloff was abducted by the Islamic State in 2013. He was killed in September, the execution videotaped and released online.

Sotloff’s mother Shirley, accompanied by her husband Arthur, read her son’s handwritten words aloud. The words were also written while Sotloff was taken hostage: “Everyone has two lives. The second one begins when you realize you only have one.”

The 2Lives foundation was created in honor of Sotloff to “support aspiring young journalists,” according to his mother.

Shirley said Sotloff’s dedication to the Newseum’s Journalists Memorial held a special place in the their hearts.

Peter Prichard, chairman and chief executive officer of the Newseum, said that attention should be placed on why the journalists passed instead of how they passed.

“It’s certainly right and just that we pause today in our busy lives to remember what these journalists did and why they did it,” Prichard said. “And it’s also right that we should recognize and honor the family members who have lost their loved ones for what is, in the end, a noble cause.”

A hashtag –#WithoutNews –accompanied Monday’s event, urging news consumers to think about the threats experienced by journalists as they report.

The hashtag also asked individuals to envision a world without news.

Chris Voss, CEO and founder of the Black Swan Group, said kidnappings of American hostages makes him angry.

Chris Voss is the founder and CEO of the Black Swan Group. “There are few people that have worked for the [U.S.] government that know as much about international kidnapping as I do,” he said. (Photo courtesy of the Black Swan Group)

The Black Swan Group prepares its clients to handle the unpredictable. Voss has 24 years of FBI experience and was their lead international kidnapping negotiator.

He said that he has been involved with about 150 successful rescuing cases worldwide, some involving children, in countries like Haiti, Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

In 2011, al-Qaida militants in Pakistan kidnapped an American named Warren Weinstein. He was accidently killed by a U.S. drone in January.

During his captivity the White House said it would not negotiate with terrorists for his release.

Elaine Weinstein released a statement after learning about her husband’s fatality: “We hope that my husband’s death and the others who have faced similar tragedies in recent months will finally prompt the U.S. government to take its responsibilities seriously and establish a coordinated and consistent approach to supporting hostages and their families.”

A bipartisan amendment to the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, headed by Democratic Rep. John Delaney of Maryland and California Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Republican, called for the creation of a “hostage czar.” Weinstein was Rep. Delaney’s constituent.

The legislation, approved by the House of Representatives, includes an Interagency Hostage Recovery Coordinator. Some of the coordinator’s tasks would include engaging in rescue missions alongside all levels of the federal government and keeping families up-to-date with hostage-related developments.

The amendment, however, does not permit negotiations with terrorists.

Voss said he has not negotiated with terrorists in his career, but rather has been involved with “third-party intermediaries” or “proxies.”

Journalists like James Foley and Steve Sotloff, who were kidnapped and then killed by Islamic State militants, led many to question whether government bodies should negotiate with terrorists to secure the release of hostages.

If government agencies were to interact with terror groups, would their arrangements be honored? Would the terrorists demand more? Would everyday people be encouraged to kidnap Americans, knowing they could engage in extortion?

According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, about $165 million has been paid to terror organizations in the form of ransom money, primarily funded by European governments.

The U.S. government has secretly negotiated with terrorists, but not through publicized monetary means. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was kidnapped for five years by Taliban sympathizers in Afghanistan, was swapped for five Guantanamo Bay detainees.

Trading prisoners of war is not unique to the United States. In 2006, Israel Defense Forces solider Gilad Shalit, held captive by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas for five years, was exchanged for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.

Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi stressed the importance of maintaining a continual relationship between Iraq and the U.S. (Ramsen Shamon/MEDILL)

WASHINGTON—Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi stressed the importance of maintaining a relationship between the United States and Iraqi governments at a pro-business reception on Thursday.

“If we are partners, we should keep that partnership. It’s important. It’s vital. Partners must trust each other,” Al-Haider said.

The prime minister, speaking at an event hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, emphasized his government’s willingness to deviate from the policies of previous administrations.

“If we make things transparent, and if we remove the red tape, you can shrink corruption by a huge amount,” he said.

Al-Haider outlined policy changes that he said will create a better relationship between the public and the private sectors.

“We have started easing visa requirements. A lot of investors now will find it much easier [to enter the country]. We want to make it quite easy for investors to come to Iraq, and truly invest,” he said. “We are introducing taxes. We are asking [the Iraqi]
people to pay for services. The government has to find funds to sustain the war. We cannot continue with free services, with free allocations. We have to make people pay for it. This is a new culture. It’s not easy.”

Brett McGurk, deputy assistant secretary for Iraq and Iran in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, applauded the prime minister’s “inclusive” government.

Brett McGurk, deputy assistant secretary for Iraq and Iran, applauded al-Abadi for his efforts against the Islamic State. (Ramsen Shamon/MEDILL)

“He has led the country through significant political reforms and very difficult economic reforms. Despite the difficult year Iraq has had, Iraq is now on track to have record-level oil exports. [He]
has instituted significant reforms on subsidies that are necessary for metro-economic stability. U.S. exports to Iraq have actually risen over the last year. It is a remarkable moment of potential for Iraq,” he said.

Khush Choksy, Chamber of Commerce vice president for Middle East affairs, spoke to the audience about investing in Iraq.

“The mission of the chamber’s U.S. – Iraq program is to increase access by American companies to Iraq’s markets, help expand American investment in Iraq, and to promote dialogue with leaders in the United States and the government of Iraq,” Choksy said.

Retired Iraqi Army Brigadier General Ismael H. Alsodani, also a defense attaché for the Embassy of Iraq in D.C., was “very optimistic” about what he heard from al-Abadi.

“I believe Iraq will be recovering, the economy will be recovering,” Alsodani said. “This is the first time I’ve heard from a prime minister of Iraq [about]
his vision for the future. He will be the man of the age in Iraq.”

Attendee Robert Lindgren, principal of Perkins + Will, was also optimistic.

Lindgren said his architecture and design firm plan to build more universities in Iraq. They have built the now-functioning American University in Sulaymaniyah.

“We do business in Iraq and we do see [corruption], and it’s certainly going to be difficult to deal with, but I think the fact that he’s acknowledging that and trying to deal with that is very important,” Lindgren said. “Projects like universities are ‘A,’ very important for a country like Iraq. And ‘B,’ those are the kinds of things that will help create a civil society…and [help people]
learn how to work together and live together.”