Jere Van Dyk is a journalist and author who has focused much of his writing on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In the early 1980s, working as a correspondent for The New York Times, Van Dyk lived with the mujahideen in Afghanistan as they fought against the Soviet Army, an experience that was recapped in his Pulitzer Prize-nominated articles.

20 years later, he returned to Afghanistan to report on the U.S.-led war, only to be captured and held by the Taliban for 45 days in 2008.

This harrowing experience, as well as his insights into this "pointless" war, are detailed in his new book "Captive: My Time as a Prisoner of the Taliban."

He is currently a consultant on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and al-Qaeda for Cbs News. ^[1]