President Trump celebrated the missionary’s return.
By Catholics for Catholics
Free at last.
Held captive in Niger for nine months, an American missionary is expected to soon reunite with his family.
After his kidnapping last year, Kevin Rideout, a Protestant Christian missionary pilot, is free and safe with American officials, his mission organization said Friday. It remains unknown how he escaped captivity or what group was holding him, but Islamist terror groups run berserk in Niger, according to a story by the Daily Wire.
Rideout, a father of four, was working with the Evangelical organization Serving in Mission (SIM) when he was kidnapped from Niamey, Niger, on October 21, 2025.
“We are grateful to confirm that our good friend and brother in Christ, Kevin Rideout, has been released after over nine months in captivity,” the organization said in a statement. “Kevin is in good health in the care of US officials. He will soon be reunited with Krista [Rideout’s wife], his children, and his extended family.”
President Donald Trump reveled in Rideout’s freedom, noting that the White House helped with the return.
“I am proud to announce that Kevin Rideout, a wonderful Christian Missionary, is back in United States Custody. Kevin was kidnapped by Jihadi terrorists in West Africa — The epicenter of Islamist terrorism, where there have been more deadly attacks in the past year than anywhere else on Earth,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Kevin, the United States of America looks forward to welcoming you HOME. Glad to have helped!”
The Rideout family thanked everyone for their prayers during the long ordeal.
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