Jill Carroll is Free

I’ve been awaiting the end of this saga with some trepidation and am relieved to relay the best-case scenario!

Swathed in an Islamic headscarf and visibly well after three months as a hostage, the 28-year-old reporter was whisked inside by astonished staff of the Iraqi Islamic Party, before media colleagues and U.S. officials were called to come and fetch her.

“I’m happy to be free. I just want to be with my family,” she said upon her release this afternoon, 82 days after being taken hostage in an ambush in which her translator was killed.
News of her release comes one day after an emotional statement from Carroll’s twin sister Katie, broadcast on al-Arabiya.

Jill is in good health and stated that she was “treated very well.” The identity of her captors and the circumstances leading to her release remain unclear at this point. Despite the United States’ blanket refusal to “negotiate with terrorists,” Carroll’s release was constantly demanded at rallies, vigils, and from leaders throughout the (Arab, Muslim and Western) world over the last few months.

Handoff to Natasha Tynes’ blog for all the latest.