A former Taliban commander, Haji Najibullah, was sentenced to 42 years in prison on Tuesday in a Manhattan federal court for his role in the kidnapping of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Rohde and for providing material support that led to the deaths of three American soldiers. The sentencing hearing featured an emotional confrontation between Rohde and Najibullah, during which Rohde expressed disappointment that Najibullah continued to blame others for his actions.
Rohde, now a national security reporter for MSNBC and formerly with The New York Times, was abducted in 2008 along with another journalist and their driver while attempting to interview Najibullah in Afghanistan. The three were held captive for more than seven months before escaping from a Taliban compound in Pakistan's tribal areas.
Najibullah, 50, pleaded guilty in April 2025 to charges of providing material support for terrorism and conspiracy to take hostages. He admitted to supplying weapons to the Taliban from 2007 to 2009, knowing they would be used to kill U.S.
soldiers. In court, Najibullah apologized to Rohde and his family, calling what happened "terrible" and expressing deep regret.
However, Rohde countered that Najibullah's lies had lured him into what he thought was an interview but turned into an ambush. Rohde described hostage-taking as a "cruel and cowardly crime" that creates an illusion for families who believe they can save their loved ones.
He emphasized that the pain he and his family endured was dwarfed by the deaths of three U.S. soldiers killed by Najibullah's associates in a separate operation.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the case proves "those who harm Americans and engage in acts of terrorism will be hunted down and brought to justice, no matter how long it takes." Judge Katherine Polk Failla acknowledged Najibullah's guilty plea and harsh prison conditions during the pandemic but rejected most leniency arguments, noting that fighters under his control attacked a convoy, killing three soldiers. She said Najibullah did not need to pull the trigger to be responsible for the deaths.
Rohde called the interview that led to his kidnapping the "biggest mistake of my life" and said he would not have arranged it if he had known Najibullah was behind the killing of American soldiers. He reaffirmed his pride in being a journalist, a statement that briefly choked him up.