The Trump administration secured the release of U.S. teacher Marc Fogel from Russia. The release was part of a negotiation involving Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East.
“Today, President Donald J. Trump and his Special Envoy Steve Witkoff are able to announce that Mr. Witkoff is leaving Russian airspace with Marc Fogel, an American who was detained by Russia,” National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said in a statement.
“President Trump, Steve Witkoff and the President’s advisors negotiated an exchange that serves as a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine,” the statement continued. “Since President Trump’s swearing-in, he has successfully secured the release of Americans detained around the world, and President Trump will continue until all Americans being held are returned to the United States. By tonight, Marc Fogel will be on American soil and reunited with his family and loved ones thanks to President Trump’s leadership.”
Fogel, a history teacher from Pennsylvania, was serving a 14-year sentence in Russia after being arrested in 2021 for drug possession. He was medically prescribed marijuana, according to the family. Fogul began serving the sentence in 2022.
The Fogel family said in a statement, “We are beyond grateful, relieved and overwhelmed that after more than three years of detention, our father, husband and son, Marc Fogel, is finally coming home.”
“Thanks to the unwavering leadership of President Trump, Marc will soon be back on American soil, free where he belongs,” they said. “This has been the darkest and most painful period of our lives, but today, we begin to heal.”
