Hostage

A hostage is a person or entity which is held by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against war. However, in contemporary usage, it means someone who is seized by a criminal abductor in order to compel another party such as a relative, employer, law enforcement, or government to act, or refrain from acting, in a particular way, often under threat of serious physical harm to the hostage(s) after expiration of an ultimatum.

A person who seizes one or more hostages is known as a hostage-taker; if the hostages are present voluntarily, then the receiver is known as a host.

Historical hostage practices

The English word "hostage" derives from French ostage, modern otage, from Late Latin obsidaticum (Medieval Latin ostaticum, ostagium), the state of being an obses (plural obsides), "hostage", from Latin obsideō ("I haunt / frequent / blockade / besiege"), but an etymological connection was later supposed with Latin hostis ("stranger," later "enemy"). This long history of political and military use indicates that political authorities or generals would legally agree to hand over one or usually several hostages in the custody of the other side, as guarantee of good faith in the observance of obligations. These obligations would be in the form of signing of a peace treaty, in the hands of the victor, or even exchange hostages as mutual assurance in cases such as an armistice. Major powers, such as Ancient Rome and the British who had colonial vassals, would especially receive many such political hostages, often offspring of the elite, even princes or princesses who were generally treated according to their rank and put to a subtle long-term use where they would be given an elitist education or possibly even a religious conversion. This would eventually influence them culturally and open the way for an amicable political line if they ascended to power after release.

Hostage (electronic musician)

Hostage, is a Scottish electronic music producer. He is currently signed to British talent agency Primary Talent International and is affiliated with various record labels, most notably Black Butter Records.

Hostage is based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

References

Navy Justice Series

The Navy Justice Series is a literary series of five novels, authored by Don Brown and published by Zondervan Publishing Company, and its parent publishing company, Harper Collins Publishing Company between 2005 and 2010. The novels, mostly of military-legal genre, are Treason (2005), Hostage (2005), Defiance (2007), Black Sea Affair (2008) and Malacca Conspiracy (2010). In 2013, film students at Montreat College in Black Mountain, North Carolina, under the direction of Professor Jim Shores, began work on adapting the Navy Justice Series for television. In 2010, Defiance, Treason and Hostage were named by Online Universities among the 50 Best Legal Novels for Both Lawyers and Laymen.

Treason

The storyline of Treason features a young Navy JAG officer, Zack Brewer, who prosecutes three Islamic chaplains in a fictional court-martial for various crimes under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. In the storyline, the three members of the Navy Chaplain Corps, all defendants in the court-martial, have incited sailors and marines to acts of terrorism. And Lieutenant Zack Brewer has been chosen to prosecute them for treason and murder.