Brett McGurk has held senior national security roles under four presidents and helped shape some of the most consequential American foreign policy in the Middle East, including the Biden administration’s response to the war in Gaza. He also negotiated Jason’s release from an Iranian prison.

McGurk is out with a new book, “Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages.” In this episode, he takes Jason behind the scenes of the high-stakes negotiations to secure the release of the hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, 2023. McGurk reflects on the moral tradeoffs involved in hostage negotiations, the Biden administration’s clashes with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the missed off-ramps for ending the war in Gaza as the death toll mounted.

Today’s show was produced by Josh Carroll and Layli Nazarova. It was edited by Ted Muldoon.

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Evan Gershkovich spent 491 days in a Russian prison after being arrested on baseless espionage charges while reporting for The Wall Street Journal. He’s now out with a new tell-all book called This Cursed Beautiful Land: A Russian-American Story.

In this episode, Jason and Evan explore the commonalities and differences between their experiences of being taken hostage by foreign governments. They discuss the guilt and confusion that permeate captivity, the ways they learned to survive, and what life is like after being released. It’s an unusually candid conversation between two journalists who have lived through similar harrowing ordeals and emerged determined to keep reporting.

Today’s show was produced by Josh Carroll and Layli Nazarova. It was edited by Ted Muldoon.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here. And watch us on YouTube here.

Press freedom faces new threats here in the United States and abroad in Iran.

Host Jason Rezaian leads with the latest news on the White House ban of media outlets CNN, Politico and MS NOW. Then, Jason and Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Arizona) discuss the fight for freedom of expression that Iranians face abroad. Ansari, the first Iranian American Democrat elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, explains what motivated her political career, why she deeply opposes the Trump administration’s immigration policies, and her hopes and dreams for Iran even as war ravages the country.

Today’s show was produced by Josh Carroll and Layli Nazarova. It was edited by Ted Muldoon.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here. And watch us on YouTube here.