{"id":2338524,"date":"2024-09-09T05:32:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-09T09:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/american-once-detained-in-syria-cherishes-everything-thats-come-from-it-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-09T05:37:43","modified_gmt":"2024-09-09T09:37:43","slug":"american-once-detained-in-syria-cherishes-everything-thats-come-from-it-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/american-once-detained-in-syria-cherishes-everything-thats-come-from-it-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"American once detained in Syria cherishes \u2018everything that\u2019s come from it\u2019 &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Famerican-once-detained-in-syria-cherishes-everything-thats-come-from-it-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2338524&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Sam \u2062Goodwin, \u2064an adventurous millennial, reflects \u200don his harrowing experience of being detained for\u2063 62 days in a Syrian prison in 2019 as he pursued his \u200bgoal of visiting every country in the world. Although he would never \u2064want to relive the ordeal, he cherishes the perspectives and connections gained from it. During his captivity, Goodwin faced solitary \u200dconfinement and witnessed the\u200b suffering of\u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-president-trump-gives-pardons-to-73-individuals-and-commutes-another-70-sentences-steve-bannon-is-included\/\" title=\"BREAKING: President Trump Gives Pardons to 73 Individuals and Commutes Another 70 Sentences \u2013 Steve Bannon Is Included\">fellow prisoners<\/a>. Despite the chaos, he managed to smuggle messages to his family, who \u2063were desperately trying\u200c to locate him. <\/p>\n<p>Following his release, Goodwin has become an advocate \u2063for\u200b hostage diplomacy, working with \u2064the Foley Foundation and speaking publicly about resilience, uncertainty, and overcoming adversity. In \u2063his upcoming book, &#8220;Saving Sam,&#8221; he discusses \u2064the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-school-district-promotes-segregated-black-parent-meeting\/\" title=\"California School District Promotes Segregated \u2018Black Parent\u2019 Meeting\">challenges faced<\/a> by his family during \u2063his disappearance and emphasizes the importance of the experience in \u2063shaping his \u2062character and faith. Goodwin acknowledges that while the experience was terrifying and life-altering, he does \u2062not regret it because of the personal \u2064growth that resulted.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">American once detained in Syria cherishes &lsquo;everything that&rsquo;s come from it&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1642602\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>EXCLUSIVE &mdash; <\/strong>Sam Goodwin, an average <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/millenials\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>millennial<\/a> with a love for <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/travel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>travel<\/a>, would &ldquo;never want to relive&rdquo; the 62 days he spent in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/syria\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Syrian\">Syrian<\/a> prison unsure if he would ever see his family and friends again, yet he &ldquo;would never want to give up everything that&rsquo;s come from it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Prior to his detention, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/samrgoodwin?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Goodwin\">Goodwin<\/a> was on a mission to visit all 193 countries, not to relax and sightsee, but to connect with and learn from people all over the world. The 13 that he had left in May 2019 were Syria and 12 Caribbean and South American countries.<\/p>\n<p>When he was in Syria in late May 2019, Sam was grabbed off the streets near Qamishli and thrown into a notorious regime prison without due process or a trial. When they <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/leaked-private-call-reveals-biden-questioning-trump-about-turning-his-head-during-assassination-attempt\/\" title=\"Leaked private call reveals Biden questioning Trump about turning his head during assassination attempt\">hadn&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t heard from him, his family members began exhausting every connection they could think of to track down their son and brother who seemingly vanished.<\/p>\n<p>Goodwin spent two months in Syrian detention in two different prisons. He was in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-grants-26-pardons-and-3-commutations-includes-numerous-prominent-names\/\" title=\"Trump Grants 26 Pardons And 3 Commutations, Includes Numerous Prominent Names\">solitary confinement<\/a> in one, and he could hear other prisoners being beaten and tortured by guards, though he never was. In the other prison, he was able to meet and connect with others, some of whom he found to be political prisoners whose crimes were speaking out against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/bashar-al-assad\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Assad regime\">Bashar al-Assad&rsquo;s regime<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>He was able to smuggle messages out of the prison through his fellow inmates-turned-friends to his family with no idea if they would be received. Goodwin&rsquo;s family, who did get the messages, wondered if they were real or simply a ploy by the Syrians to incriminate him.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I am incredibly grateful for the journey and the perspectives that came from it,&rdquo; Goodwin told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> of his conquest to visit every country in the world even though his adventures nearly came to an abrupt end when the Assad regime in Syria effectively kidnapped him.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sam Goodwin and his family meet with Robert O&rsquo;Brien, then-National Security Adviser to President Donald Trump. Left to right: David Goodwin, brother; Ann Goodwin, mother; Paul Goodwin, brother; O&rsquo;Brien; Stephanie McCue, sister; Betty Ludden, sister; and Sam Goodwin. (Courtesy of Sam Goodwin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the five years since his arrest, Goodwin has invested himself in the world of hostage diplomacy, the term given to the strategy implemented by many anti-United States countries and nonstate actors, to kidnap or detain Americans to use as leverage. He worked for the Foley Foundation, an advocacy group named after murdered journalist James Foley, advocating on Capitol Hill to members of Congress and is a member of its advisory board. He also is now a professional public speaker, often talking to workplaces about resilience, uncertainty, and overcoming adversity.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;People ask me quite a bit, if you could go back, would you still travel the way you did, or still go on this trip?&rdquo; Goodwin said. &ldquo;And on one hand, I would never want to relive captivity and wouldn&rsquo;t wish that on anybody. But on the other hand, I would also, and I think more importantly, I would never want to give up everything that&rsquo;s come from it &hellip; the opportunity to meet some remarkable people, to grow in character and in faith, and really just in understanding of the stuff in life that actually matters.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This was a challenging situation,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;It was very uncomfortable, it was, frankly, terrifying &mdash; life or death. But there have been so many good things that have come from it. I wouldn&rsquo;t be who I am today without this, and I don&rsquo;t think that my family would either.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The federal government was not overly helpful to Goodwin&rsquo;s family in its efforts to locate and return him, according to his new book, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Saving-Sam-Americans-Disappearance-Extraordinary\/dp\/1546007741\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Saving Sam\">Saving Sam<\/a><\/em>, which is set to come out this week. Instead, his family members began reaching out to anyone and everyone they could think of who could help find Sam, but they were doing so while trying not to bring attention to his case.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sam Goodwin, who was detained in Syria, reunites with his parents in Beirut. (Courtesy of Sam Goodwin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>But, the &ldquo;key pivotal moment&rdquo; in securing his release was his sister, broken down with the emotional burden of not knowing where her brother was in Syria, reaching out to her roommate from college simply to vent. Unbeknownst to Goodwin&rsquo;s sister, Stephanie, her former roommate, also named Stephanie, had an uncle whose longtime Army friend had risen the ranks to the head of Lebanese internal security. The family credits Gen. Abbas Ibrahim, who was only informed of Goodwin&rsquo;s case by his longtime friend, for getting him out of Syria.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is a situation where the FBI, the CIA, the Pentagon, the White House, Pope Francis was involved, Russian intelligence, Middle East NGOs, private sector security companies &mdash; the list goes on &mdash; they were all essentially struggling to be effective,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But my sister&rsquo;s college roommate could identify a path to get an American hostage released from captivity. And for me, I believe it was divine. There&rsquo;s really no other explanation that, to me, makes any sense.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Goodwin said he believes the government has improved its handling of wrongfully detained cases, but work remains to be done.<\/p>\n<p>The Biden administration recently agreed to a massive prisoner exchange with Russia that involved several other countries including Belarus, Germany, and Slovenia. It secured the release of four Americans, including Paul Whelan, who had been detained in Russia since before Goodwin was taken by the Syrians.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1642602\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1642602\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>**Read more&#8230;**<\/p>\n<p>An American who was once imprisoned in Syria values the lessons learned from his experience. Sam Goodwin, a typical millennial passionate about travel, reflects on the 62 days he spent in a Syrian prison, expressing that while he would &#8220;never want to relive&#8221; that ordeal and the uncertainty of seeing his loved ones again, he also wouldn&#8217;t trade away &#8220;everything that&#8217;s come from it.&#8221; Before his detention, Goodwin aimed to visit all 193 countries\u2014not for leisure but to engage with and learn from diverse cultures. In May 2019, he had only 13 countries left on his list: Syria and twelve Caribbean and South American nations. While in Syria at the end of May 2019, he was seized off the streets near Qamishli and thrown into a notorious regime prison without any legal process.<\/p>\n<p>As time passed without news of him, Goodwin&#8217;s family began reaching out through every possible connection to locate their missing son and brother. He endured two months in detention across two different prisons\u2014one where he experienced solitary confinement amid sounds of other prisoners being tortured (though he himself was not harmed), and another where he connected with fellow inmates including political prisoners opposing Bashar al-Assad\u2019s regime. He managed to send messages home through these new friends despite not knowing if they would reach his family or be used against him.<\/p>\n<p>Goodwin expressed immense gratitude for the journey he&#8217;s been on since then during an interview with the Washington Examiner. Despite nearly losing everything when kidnapped by Assad&#8217;s regime, he&#8217;s now involved in hostage diplomacy efforts after working with the Foley Foundation\u2014an advocacy group named after slain journalist James Foley\u2014and has become a professional public speaker focusing on resilience and overcoming adversity.<\/p>\n<p>When asked if he&#8217;d still choose to travel as before given what happened to him, Goodwin acknowledged that while he&#8217;d never wish captivity upon anyone nor want to experience it again himself, he&#8217;d also never give up what came from it: meeting remarkable people and gaining deeper insights into life\u2019s true values.<\/p>\n<p>He described his ordeal as challenging yet transformative; although terrifying at times\u2014life or death\u2014it ultimately shaped who he is today along with impacting his family&#8217;s growth as well.<\/p>\n<p>In recounting how difficult it was for his family during this time\u2014including limited assistance from federal authorities\u2014Goodwin shared details about pivotal moments leading up to his release detailed in his upcoming book *Saving Sam*. His sister&#8217;s emotional outreach led her college roommate\u2014a woman whose uncle held significant influence within Lebanese security\u2014to play a crucial role in securing Sam\u2019s freedom amidst various governmental agencies struggling for effectiveness.<\/p>\n<p>Goodwin believes there have been improvements regarding how wrongful detentions are handled by government entities but acknowledges there&#8217;s still work ahead. Recently under Biden&#8217;s administration there were notable prisoner exchanges involving multiple nations which successfully freed several Americans including Paul Whelan who had been detained long before Goodwin\u2019s own capture<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2671,"featured_media":2338525,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Reuniting-in-Beirut-July-26-2019.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[4123,40430,8518,7887,32076],"class_list":["post-2338524","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-american","tag-cherish","tag-detained","tag-syria","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Reuniting-in-Beirut-July-26-2019.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2338524","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2671"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2338524"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2338524\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2338525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2338524"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2338524"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2338524"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}