President Obama met Friday with the parents of Kayla Mueller, the American hostage who was killed last month in Syria while being held by the Islamic State.
At the Veterans Affairs hospital in Phoenix where he was visiting, Mr. Obama met with Carl and Marsha Mueller, who have criticized the U.S. policy not to pay ransom for hostages. Kayla’s brother Eric also attended the meeting; the family lives in Arizona.
“The president expressed his and the first lady’s condolences for Kayla’s death,” said White House deputy press secretary Eric Schultz. “He appreciated the chance to hear from the Muellers more about Kayla’s compassion and dedication to assisting those in need around the world, and recognized the family’s efforts to set up the foundation ’Kayla’s Hands’ to improve the lives of others.”
Ms. Mueller, 26, was killed in February in Syria. The Islamic State claimed that she was killed by an airstrike.
Mr. Mueller said earlier that the family had asked the administration to change the ransom policy.
“But they put policy in front of American citizens’ lives. And it didn’t get it changed,” he said.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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