Curtis was held prisoner by alnusra front, a syrian group with ties to al qaeda. Curtis speaking today, says hell tell the rest of his story later, once he spends time with his family, once hes bonded properly with his mother and family and recovered from this horrendous ordeal. First of all, i want to thank you all for coming out here this beautiful wednesday morning. In the days following my release on sunday, i have learned bit by bit that there have been literally hundreds of people, brave determined and bighearted people all over the world working for my release. They have been working for two years on this. I had no idea when i was in prison i had no idea that so much effort was being expended on my behalf. And now having found out, i am just overwhelmed with emotion. Im also overwhelmed with one other thing, and that is total strangers coming up to me saying were glad youre home, welcome home, glad youre back, glad youre safe. Great to see you. So i suddenly remember how good the American People are and what kindness they have in their hearts. And to all those people, i say a huge thank you from my heart. From the bottom of my heart. And now, look, i am so grateful that you are expressing all this interest in me. At the same time, i have to bond with my mother and my family now, and i cant give you an interview and i cant give you a talk back and forth. Can you tell us what it feels like. All i can say to you in the future, i promise i will respond to your emails and i will be present and i will help you guys do your job. And im one of you and i know what you guys are going through. So i want to help you guys and i will be there, and i will respond. But i cant do it now. Thanks very much. So he is heading home to spend muchneeded time with his family. Unfortunately, for several of the people youre seeing on the screen, the outcome is different. The middle picture, captured american journalist, james foley, he never got to come home. He was beheaded by isis militants. The gentleman on the far right, american steven sotloff, is still being held by that same terrorist group. So robert young peltin, let me bring you in, journalist, documentary film maker and author of the worlds most dangerous places welcome back to the show. Thanks, brooke. I want to get into your own personal ordeal being held hostage in colombia, south america. First, let me ask this. For these journalists going into incredibly dangerous places such as iraq, syria, afghanistan, what is the number one risk . Well, in syria, its obviously being kidnapped much there was a large group of journalists who all stayed in the same hotels, fired the same fixers and about the same time that alnusra and isis came into being, there was a lot of interest in fining out if there were foreign fighters against them so there is a lot of paranoia on the fighter side and a huge rush of novice and freelance journalist so it led to a number of kidnappings over 2012 and 2013. But to me it seems everything ive read about syria, robert, also its the variable of the unknown. U. S. Doesnt have much intelligence there, perhaps thats part of the surveillance fleets, you know, overhead. Wouldnt that be a huge disadvantage being held in a place like syria . Well, you know, as you have seen from the impact, the death of mr. Foley had, one person can change the Foreign Policy of an entire nation. So hostages have a huge value now in this asymmetrical warfare of terrorism. These groups which are funded by qatar and saudi arabia are also sort of splitting their allegiances. So theyre keeping these hostages as sort of aces in the hole. You can see how theyre being used differently. Some are murdered, some are released and some you never hear from again. It was qatar from what i read that really did help secure curtis release. But to you, robert, to your kidnapping in colombia, by the death squads in 2002, can you just share a little bit about that and the hardship and how did you survive . Well, what you learn is when youre kidnapped is that you worry more about other people, because youre dealing with a situation hour by hour. But you start thinking about your loved ones and your friends and people that have no idea whats going on. They have no idea whether youre going to be murdered or set free. And luckily, the group that kidnapped me when they finally were able to get my name out to their leader, he remembered me from an interview i had set up. His name was Carlos Castano and he sent a strange press release to reuters saying i was being held for my safety. So he was able to mask his kidnapping and i was released along with two other people. But the situation in the middle east is much, much more serious. These people are held for years. Theyre used as propaganda tools. And it makes our coverage of conflict very, very difficult. What was your darkest moment when you were in colombia . The initial ambush in which the death squads jumped out of the bush, pointing weapons at us after they just killed a couple indians. My biggest fear was i was with two young people who probably werent as experienced. And i felt very bad for their safety. So that was really my darkest moment. I occupy myself with storing food, seeing how long they let me go to the bathroom. Theres a number of things you do to test your captors. And like i said, i was not held for years like these gentlemen were. One other american journalist, steven sotloff, hes being held. In fact, we saw him on his knees in a similar orange jumpsuit in that james foley video. And we have now heard from and seen sotloffs mother, ms. Sotloff, made an emotional plea today for the release of her son. Let me play that for our viewers. Steven has no control over the actions of the u. S. Government. Hes an innocent journalist. Ive always learned that you, the caliphate, can grant amnesty. I ask you to please release my child. As a mother, i ask your justice to be merciful, and not punish my son for matters he has no control over. Robert, how do you think her plea could help or perhaps hurt her sons cause . Sadly, i dont think it has any impact. You have to remember, the narrative of these islamic groups is as you see from the orange jump suits, a number of atrocities and inequities have been dealt to the islamic and public civilians in numerous countries. And so theyre basically saying, look, we dont care. We dont have any mercy towards you. The other thing is that there is a dirty game being played. I mean, the gentleman that was just released who we know is michael curtis, is actually theo padnose, famous for going under cover in the mosques in yemen and these groups are paranoid so they dont know if they have a journalist or a spy or an aide worker. Obviously, i let them go and conduct their business as journalists. But its a very dangerous business. Talking to someone who was kidnapped in syria later in the show and he came home and says thats it. Hes finished. Because of a lot of the polarization and the way americans even perceive some of these hardened, brazened journalists these days. Robert young peltin, thank you for joining me. We are learning much more today about the man believed to be the First American to fight and to die for the brutal terror group, isis. He is Douglas Mccarthur mccain. He was just 33 years of age. Had a child, was killed over the weekend in a battle with another terror group. This was just outside of aleppo, syrias largest city. Doug mccain grew up outside of minneapolis in a suburb. He was raised christian, but converted to islam a couple of years ago. An old friend remembers he was a nice, quiet kid, had a big heart, loved playing basketball. Mccain had a few minor scrapes with the law. His family is stunned. Its mindblowing. Its crazy. I dont understand it. I dont even believe it. Im in shock. Like, i dont even know how to feel. My cousin was not a terrorist. He is not a terrorist. So the family is in shock. But i want you to take a look at some of the tweets from mccains account. His bio, islam over everything. His tweets, joining you guys soon. Quote, im with the brothers now, increasingly sympathetic with isis when you read what hes put out there. And that put him squarely in the sights of u. S. Intelligence. And now were getting word in addition to mccain there is a second american who may have been killed along with mccain on that isis battlefield. Cnn justice reporter, evan perez, is joining me with more on that newer report, evan. How credible is this claim that it wasnt just mccain as an american, but a second american to be killed fighting for isis . Brooke, the short answer is we dont know just yet. The American Government says theyre checking this out. Obviously, something theyre taking very seriously. This group, by the way, posted pictures of mccain and his passport and pictures of his body. So thats how officials were able to confirm that it is indeed the person that they thought. In the case of the second american, the alleged second american, they havent done t t that, it appears. That is something the government is trying to check out. They know, for instance, there are over a dos dozen americans they believe have joined isis and fighting over there. Among over 100 americans fighting, you know, in other groups in syria. So its something that theyre definitely taking seriously. All right. Evan perez, thank you so much. Still ahead, cnn speaks with two isis fighters who tell our own correspondent, it would be an honor to behead a nonbeliever. The interview is chilling. Well play part of it for you coming up. Also a story thats got a lot of people shaking their heads. A 9yearold girl, shes got a ponytail and pink shorts a gun range accidentally kills her instructor using a powerful submachine gun. Did the instructor break the rules . Should she have been there in the first place . We now know whether there will be charges. Stay right here. Tthe will. , mobilizing to take on the world . You dont know aarp. Aarp and its foundation are taking on hunger with 29 million meals donated. Drive to end hunger teams with local agencies to reach the hungriest among us. If you dont think feed the hungry when you think aarp, then you dont know aarp. Find more surprising possibilities and get to know us at aarp. Org possibilities. Youre watching cnn, im brooke baldwin. We have to talk about this arizona shooting. Some people are calling it a freak accident. Others a bad idea from the getgo. It has left one man dead and a little girl absolutely devastated. Heres the story. A 9yearold accidentally killed her shooting instructor monday with an uzi submachine gun. And sheriffs officials Just Announced there will be no charges. Okay . No charges here. Were showing this video at the gun range to help you understand what happened. You see the instructor here giving this little girl a lesson. The little girl, by the way, lives in new jersey. Okay, turn this leg forward. There you go, just like that. All right. Go ahead and give me one shot. All right so the mojave county Sheriffs Office says seconds after that clip, the girl pulled the trigger again and the recoil sent the gun up over her head where her instructor was standing, 39yearold, charles baca, who was hit and killed. Well, a 9yearold gets an uzi in her hand when theyre within the criteria is 8 years old to shoot firearms. We instruct kids as young as 5 and. 22 rifles and they dont get to handle high firearms but under the supervision of their parents and our professional range master. I have lots and lots of chess jean casarez. Lets begin first with what we know. We explained after the recoil went over her head and hit him, thats what coiled him. Right. And let me add to that, because the ballistic expert ive been talking to is saying this is a submachine pistol. And when you pull the trigger, since its automatic, the bullets come out one after the other. And the recoil, meaning it goes back when you shoot it. And she just lost control of the gun. It appears as though. But i think whats interesting is this outdoor shooting range. This is an outdoor shooting range near hoover dam, near lake mead, outside las vegas. They specialize in shooting machine guns and specialty weapons. So when you go there, as a family, and you take your child, you know what theyre going to be shooting. This is the question that at least this was first on my mind, how can you have a 9yearold girl i totally get it, guns rights, you can lawfully shoot a gun. But at 9 . Is she big enough, strong enough, tall enough . She looked pretty frail, right . And that would be for a gun expert. What youre driving at is there are weapons for children. There are guns for children. Remember, bb guns . An uzi . But this is a submachine pistol. And so no charges. We just learned, no charges. We have just confirmed, there will be no charges at all in this case, according to the mojave county sheriffs department. Its going to be an investigation by osha now, which traditionally, brooke, is accidents in the workplace. And so this instructor, charles vacca, who died, 39 years old, we believe hes a young married man. He was an employee. And so this would be a classified as a workplace killing, shooting. So you covered a similar case back in 2006 . There was a case in massachusetts in 2008. It was a gun show. And it was a little boy who was shooting with an uzi, the same thing. And he shot and killed himself. And the man that put together the gun show was charged, not his father, who was videotaping it. And by the way, somebody videotaped this little girl in arizona. We believe it may have been her family. But what was a shooting sportsman type event is now being videotaped. The reasons we dont know. But sometimes parents are proud of their children, right . I mean, 9 years of age, you are old enough to know what has happened and to remember that the rest of your life. Jean casarez, thank you very much. Just ahead, what drives young men, especially westerners, to join jihad . Cnn speaks with these two fighters in syria and the chilling interview. Do not miss that. Also ahead, as president obama considers action inside syria, my next guest says the u. S. Has no idea whats going on there. Hear why. Next. As president obama is now weighing his options for a possible strike, against isis inside of syria, my next guest says america knows very little about whats happening there. Joshua keating wrote a piece for slate. Com called, quote, we have no idea whats going on in syria. Welcome. Thanks, brooke. So lets begin with the president. We know he has plans on the table or has been presented with plans on what to do with syria. Hes based upon everything we have seen, very analytical in iraq or afghanistan. Has made calls based upon years of experience, u. S. Has had on the ground. But what intelligence does obama really have in syria . How would he make that kind of call . Well, from what we know, its fairly limited. I think thats part of the reason why whatever operation that we are going to carry out in syria is beginning with these surveillance flights. I mean, in iraq, of course, there were 200 u. S. Advisers sent a few weeks before air strikes against isis began. And, of course, as a country we have the u. S. Military has a lot of experience fighting in. And, you know, when the u. S. Carries out drone strikes against al qaeda targets in places like yemen or pakistan, its generally done with at least the tacit acceptance of those governments. In syria, the situation is a little different. Were dealing with a hostile government that has pledged to defend its air space. You bring up those surveillance flights. Heres my question to you. Is that the signal that something is imminent, or that is the beginning of likely months of intelligence gathering before anything happens . Yeah, my expectation is going would be this is going to move pretty slowly. I mean, what we have seen from this president is that hes very reluctant to get intervened to intervene in syria. We have seen that over the course of this war. But this is definitely the closest we have appeared to taking action in syria since last year when air strikes were threatened over the countrys chemical weapons program. But you know, i think is there a growing we have seen this with a statement from the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff this week. Is a growing acceptance that theres no way to effectively turn back isis, unless they address both sides of the syrian and iraqi border. If we only attack isis on the iraqi side, they can simply melt back and regroup on the syrian side. So if were really serious about turning this group back then operations on both sides of the border are going to be necessary. I think the question is how ambitious is this president really going to be about isis . Sure. Is the goal just to contain it or to permanently degrade its capabilities . Well, from listening to you bring up chairman Martin Dempsey and secretary of defense chuck hagel, we heard from them saying it seems like more imminently the goal is contained and then longterm. Isis militants or whateveretration of isis was in recent years has been there a long time. So youre saying it will be a while to evict them, destroy them, which ultimately seems to be the goal. But what about this, because we also heard from those two top brass at dod saying we know there was this covert operation to rescue james foley in syria. We found out about that last week, which, you know, unfortunately was unsuccessful. But that at least tells me, you know that u. S. Has some sort of intelligence. You know, guys on the ground getting something out of syria. Its not like we havent been there, period. Sure. Thats definitely true. And for several years now, we know theres been at least some cia effort to arm rebel groups within syria. These are the rebels who are fighting both against Bashar Al Assads government and against isis. There are a number of factions. And we have been working to sort of vet the groups that are receiving these weapons. You know, we dont know a lot about exactly how this Program Works and exactly how many assets are on the ground, whether theyre in syria or operating out of turkey or another neighboring country. But, you know, i think its certainly safe to say that and, you know, from what the statements we have heard from military leaders in the last few days, they dont feel quite comfortable launching a military operation yet and would like to gather some more information before a fullscale strikes are launched, if they ever are. Which to your point will take a little bit of time, some months at least. Joshua keating, thank you so much. I wanted to stay on syria. There is so much to talk about. Just think about this. You have isis killing the rebels who are fighting against bashar al assad. The u. S. May try and kill isis. So both scenarios there would be support by assad, one of americas biggest enemies. Well discuss assads position currently, and more on our breaking news here. Were learning a cbc employee may have been exposed to ebola. Those details coming up. Youre watching cnn. Trouble makers. Dreamer of dreamers. We are the yao chinese singing oh. Oh. Oh. Oh. Thats a good thing, but it doesnt cover everything.