A former Taliban commander was sentenced to 42 years in prison on Tuesday for crimes including the kidnapping of a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and the killing of American soldiers. Hajji Najibullah, 50, received his sentence in Manhattan federal court after pleading guilty in April 2025 to providing material support for terrorism and conspiring to take hostages.
Journalist confronts captor
During the sentencing, journalist David Rohde faced Najibullah and described how the former commander participated in his abduction in 2008. Rohde, now a national security reporter for MSNBC and formerly with The New York Times, told Judge Katherine Polk Failla that he was surprised and disappointed that Najibullah was blaming others for his role. Rohde was kidnapped along with another journalist and a driver, and they were held for over seven months before escaping from a Taliban compound in Pakistan's tribal areas.
Najibullah's apology and role
Najibullah, wearing a black skull cap, apologized to Rohde and his family, saying he deeply regretted his role. However, Rohde stated that Najibullah's lies led him to what he thought was an interview but turned into an ambush. Rohde emphasized the cruelty of hostage-taking, noting that families suffer under the illusion they can save their loved ones, but lack the leverage and funds for ransom.
US soldiers killed
Rohde also highlighted that his suffering was dwarfed by the deaths of three US soldiers killed by Najibullah's cohorts in a separate operation. He named the soldiers emotionally, expressing grief for their deaths and the pain endured by his family. Najibullah admitted to providing weapons to the Taliban from 2007 to 2009, knowing they would be used to kill US soldiers in Afghanistan.
