We are here for families and former hostages affected by kidnappings and arbitrary detentions.
We provide specialist information, guidance, and assistance for people affected by hostage situations, including arbitrary detentions. We help to make sense of any difficulties along the way and offer on-going practical and emotional support. Our services are delivered for free and for as long as is needed for families and former hostages.
On 17 April 1986 John McCarthy CBE was working in Lebanon as a journalist when he was kidnapped and held hostage for five years. He was cut off from the world, from everyone, including his family…
Thursday 5 March 2026 marks World Book Day – a day to celebrate authors, illustrators, books, and the joy of reading. Here at Hostage International, we would like to use the day to pay tribute to…
In January 2026, Lara Symons, our CEO contributed to the Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism feeding in from our perspective as the longest-established charity supporting families and former hostages. In it she shares our…
Hostage International is launching a bespoke family integration service to offer extra help for families and former hostages as they readjust to life together after release. This innovative intervention follows a successful pilot project conducted last…
Jorge L. Toledo was arbitrarily detained for 1,775 days as a political prisoner in Venezuela. He endured notorious prisons in which he survived brutal physical and psychological torture. He strongly believes that you can extract value…
British psychologist, Dr Sarah Whittaker, is on our network of mental health experts working with many of those we support at Hostage International. The article below was originally published in faz.net. Dr. Sarah Whittaker is a…
Three years, nearly to the day, of her release from arbitrary detention in Iran, Nazanin was in Salisbury Cathedral in conversation with The Rt Revd Karen Gorham, Bishop of Sherborne. On International Womenâs Day, Nazanin shared…
A labour of love saw Dave Muller spending ten years building a yacht from scratch and in 1990 he set off with his family to fulfil his dream of voyaging to the tropics. Despite years of…
