now, curtis van initialled in 2012. he was preparing to go into syria. it appear -- he appeared two months ago as you can see from the photo on the screen there. no one's 100% sure who had been holding him at the time of his release. but john kerry said he was held by sunni extremists. this is what secretary kerry had to say in a statement. the united states reached out to more than a dozen countries asking for urgent help from anyone to help secure his release and the release of any americans held hostage in syria. we continue to use ever diplomatic, intelligence and military tool at our disposal to help find them. and susan rice gave these details about the release. for two years, we've kept peter curtis, a u.s. citizen held hostage in syria in our thoughts and prayers. today, we join his family and loved ones in welcoming his freedom. he is now safe outside of syria and we expect him to be reunited with his family shortly. this comes the week after we saw the horrific beheading of james foley. that of course shook the world about american journalists