Kuwait frees 10 more Americans in the second release in as many months
[May 01, 2025]
By ERIC TUCKER
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kuwait has released an additional 10 American
detainees, bringing to nearly two dozen the total number freed by the
country in the past two months, U.S. officials told The Associated Press
on Wednesday.
The pardons of 23 Americans, done as a goodwill gesture by a U.S. ally,
have yielded a quick succession of prisoner releases in the early months
of a Trump administration that has sought to make hostage and detainee
issues a foreign policy priority.
The prisoners, both men and women, include military contractors and
veterans held for years on drug charges and other offenses by the small,
oil-rich nation. One of them was said by supporters to have been coerced
into signing a false confession and endured physical violence and
threats against his wife and daughter.
Ten others were released in March, weeks after a visit to Kuwait by Adam
Boehler, who is serving as the Trump administration’s envoy for hostage
affairs. Other countries, including Venezuela, have released large
numbers of Americans over a period of years, but it's unusual for so
many U.S. citizens to be freed by a foreign nation in such a short
period of time as Kuwait has done.
“We flew out, we sat down with the Kuwaitis, and they said, 'Listen, no
one’s ever asked before at this level” for the release of the Americans,
Boehler told the AP.
The releases were not done as part of a swap and the U.S. was not asked
to give up anything in return.
“They’ve been extremely responsive, and their view is the United States
is a huge ally. They know it’s a priority for (President Donald Trump)
to bring Americans home,” Boehler said. “I credit it to the Kuwaiti
understanding that we’ve stood up for them historically and they know
that these things are important for the president.”
Kuwait is considered a major non-NATO ally of the U.S. The U.S. and
Kuwait have had a close military partnership since America launched the
1991 Gulf War to expel Iraqi troops after Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein
invaded Kuwait, with some 13,500 American troops stationed in Kuwait at
Camp Arifjan and Ali al-Salem Air Base.
But the country also has detained many American military contractors on
drug charges, in some cases for years. Their families have alleged that
their loved ones faced abuse while imprisoned in a country that bans
alcohol and has strict laws regarding drugs. Others have criticized
Kuwaiti police for bringing trumped-up charges and manufacturing
evidence used against them — allegations never acknowledged by the
autocratic nation ruled by a hereditary emir.
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In this image released by the U.S. State Dept., Adam Boehler, the
Trump administration's top envoy for hostage affairs, left, greets
military contractor Tony Holden, who was recently released from
Kuwait, at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly,
Va., on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (U.S. State Dept. via AP)
A spokesperson for the Kuwaiti embassy in Washington didn't
immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Americans freed Wednesday “maintain their innocence, and it’s
important to note none of these cases had an identified victim, and
all of them were built on supposed confessions taken in Arabic
without translation,” according to a statement from Jonathan Franks,
a private consultant working on cases involving American hostages
and detainees who represented nine of the 10 people released. He
spent weeks in the country trying to negotiate the releases.
He credited the Trump administration for looking “for reasons to
bring Americans home” even when they are not designated by the U.S.
government as having been wrongfully detained. He said “these
Americans, mostly veterans, lost years with their families.”
Among those freed Wednesday was Tony Holden, an HVAC technician and
career defense contractor. He was working in support of Camp Arifjan
at the time of his November 2022 arrest, when his family and
supporters allege he was “set up by corrupt Kuwaiti police looking
to earn bonuses.”
His supporters say his wife and daughter were physically threatened,
that he was coerced into signing a written confession in Arabic and
that his drug possession charge and sentence came in spite of him
testing negative in a drug test and abstaining for religious reasons
from drug and alcohol use.
“We are grateful to see Tony Holden released today," said Stacia
George, chief engagement officer of Global Reach, a nonprofit
organization that has advocated for Holden’s release. "Tony is an
innocent man who was held unjustly for 902 days and this gives him
the ability to come home to his family and restart his life."
Added U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio: “We celebrate his release
and return to the United States.”
A minor is also being released in the coming days but is expected to
remain in Kuwait, a U.S. official said.
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