A nearly seven-year-long journey through Beirut's heart of darkness ended Wednesday for Terry Anderson, the longest-held of the Western hostages in Lebanon, bringing almost to a close a chapter of Middle East history that brought successive U.S. administrations to frustrated impotence before a shadowy group of radical Muslims. The release came after President Barack Obama and his national security team had been working on an agreement with Iran over its nuclear program since last summer. At a press conference in Damascus, Syria, held Wednesday, the 44-year-old journalist said his companions sustained him in his long ordeal in captivity, his religious faith and his "stubbornness."
A nearly seven-year-long journey through Beirut's heart of darkness ended Wednesday for Terry Anderson, the longest-held of the Western hostages in Lebanon, bringing almost to a close a chapter of Middle East history that brought successive U.S. administrations to frustrated impotence before a shadowy group of radical Muslims. Anderson arrived in Germany early today and was reunited with the sister who campaigned tirelessly for his release. At a press conference in Damascus, Syria, held Wednesday, the 44-year-old journalist said his companions sustained him in his long ordeal in captivity, his religious faith and his "stubbornness."