Ex-Taliban Commander Gets 42 Years in Prison in Killings of US Soldiers and Journalists' Kidnappings
Haji Najibullah admitted supporting the Taliban with weapons and was linked to the 2008 abduction that held David Rohde captive for more than seven months.
- On Tuesday, a Manhattan federal court sentenced former Taliban commander Haji Najibullah to 42 years in prison for kidnapping Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Rohde.
- Najibullah participated in the 2008 abduction of Rohde and two others in Afghanistan, where the group was held for more than seven months before escaping a Taliban-controlled compound in Pakistan.
- During his April 2025 guilty plea, Najibullah admitted providing weapons to the Taliban, knowing they would be used to cause casualties in Afghanistan.
- Facing Najibullah in court, Rohde told Judge Katherine Polk Failla he was "surprised and disappointed" by the defendant's attempt to deflect blame, though Najibullah later apologized for his role.
- Rohde called hostage-taking "a cruel and cowardly crime," noting that ransom demands are "an illusion," while emphasizing the pain caused by three U.S. soldiers killed by Najibullah's cohorts in a separate operation.
29 Articles
29 Articles
Ex-Taliban commander gets 42 years in prison in killings of U.S. soldiers and journalists’ kidnappings
A former Taliban commander was sentenced to 42 years in prison on Tuesday for crimes including kidnapping a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and providing support that led to the deaths of three American soldiers.
US journalist rips ‘cowardly’ and ‘cruel’ Taliban commander — who’s sentenced to 42 years for kidnapping him
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Rohde held hostage by the Taliban in Afghanistan for months shot a death glare at his captor Haji Najibullah in Manhattan court Monday — before the terrorist was hit with a 42-year sentence.
Ex-Taliban commander gets 42 years in prison in killings of U.S. soldiers and journalists' kidnappings
A former Taliban commander has been sentenced in New York to 42 years in prison for crimes including the 2008 kidnapping of a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.
Associated Press News
Ex-Taliban commander gets 42 years in prison in killings of US soldiers and journalists' kidnappings
A former Taliban commander has been sentenced in New York to 42 years in prison for crimes including the 2008 kidnapping of a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.
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