AMERICAN 'BEHEADED IN IRAQ'

Sky News ^ | 7AUG04 | Sky News

[familyop]

A video purporting to show an American being beheaded in Iraq has been posted on a militant Islamic website.      

The hostage said he was from San Francisco and urged American troops to leave Iraq, it is reported.

The al Qaeda-linked group led by the Jordanian Abu Musab al Zarqawi claimed responsibility for the killing.    

The man named himself as Benjamin Ford on the video.   

"My name is Benjamin Ford. I am from San Francisco, California," he says, dressed in a plain beige T-shirt as he sat on a chair.   

"We need to leave this country right now. If we don't, everyone is gonna be killed in this way," he said.   

The video then showed him being beheaded.  

The United States this week said the US-led military coalition in Iraq would not make any more concessions to kidnappers after the Philippines withdrew its troops to win the release of a hostage. 

[familyop]

...another beheading.

[GeronL]

The other article said the name was Benjamin Danforth

[GeronL]

Benjamin Ford from San Francisco?? Harrison's son the cook?? Oh the humanity!!

OK, so they don't seem sure about the last name.

[Ros42]

I'm just having a hard time imagining someone from San Francisco, in Iraq...unless he was a soldier.

[vox humana]

We need to leave this country right now. If we don't, everyone is gonna be killed in this way.

Darwin Award Winner #94123

[familyop]

"The other article said the name was Benjamin Danforth"

Yep. In "breaking news," there is apparently as much hurry among journalists as among people who post it here.

Heh. We'll see what info further reports bring.

[billclintonwillrotinhell]

"We need to leave this country right now. If we don't, everyone is gonna be killed in this way," he said.

If accurate, this is a really strange quote from the beheading victim. It implies that he knew for sure he was about to be killed. If you're an American who knows you're about to be beheaded, do you spend your last moments on this planet blasting your own country? Maybe he was afraid of being tortured if he didn't say what the terrorists wanted him to say before his death?

Or maybe he actually believed what he said? If that's the case, the terrorists may have just murdered someone who was actually on their side.

[GeronL]

Or a member of the fringe left who went to show solidarity with the bad guys. Bechtel is one of the big rebuilding contractors in Iraq, they are based in San Fancisco.

[GeronL]

If he was not an Arab Muslim he was their infidel enemy

[Sloth]

I'd figure he hoped they wouldn't kill him if he co-operated. Survival instinct will make you do a lot of things.

[Ros42]

That's as bad as the human sheilds that went over to protect Sad-damn..they didn't stay long did they? :)

[GeronL]

Only a girlie man would want to be a human shield instead of the point of the spear. whatever that means.

[billclintonwillrotinhell]

I'd figure he hoped they wouldn't kill him if he co-operated.

But in the quote, the victim says that everyone will be "killed in this way" if America doesn't leave Iraq. So him saying that on camera would be of no use to the terrorists unless they actually went ahead and killed him, which they apparently did. This just doesn't sound right. Of course, initial news reports are often inaccurate, and we've already seen two different names for the American so far.

[familyop]

Fox says it "sounds like Benjamin Vanderford."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,128314,00.html

[AmericaUnited]

Or maybe he actually believed what he said? If that's the case, the terrorists may have just murdered someone who was actually on their side.

Being that he was from San Fransisco, maybe he was expecting 72 virgin drag queens for being a anti-war martyr...

[GeronL]

So now we have 3 different names. wonderful.

[TYVets]

"If accurate, this is a really strange quote from the beheading victim. "

He was in a very stressful situation, it is hard to anticipate what you or I might say in a similar circumstance.

[billclintonwillrotinhell]

It was kind of funny how Saddam was so eager to take up the human shields on their offers only to have them be shocked and outraged when he wanted to position them in places that practically had the word "TARGET" written all over them! LOL!

[GeronL]

I couldn't get the URL, but I found this...

Thursday night in D5

By Adriel Hampton
Staff Writer
Monday, May 31, 2004

A DOZEN DISTRICT 5 candidates gathered Thursday night at the Park Branch Library, not to size each other up, but to hash out common goals. The unique "Candidates Collaborative" is the brainchild of poet and candidate Diamond Dave Whitaker, and was MC'd by Stanford philosophy student and candidate Julian Davis. The array of serious candidates (neither Whitaker nor h brown, who also attended, are in to win) agreed on two basic principles: minimize personal attacks and focus on increasing turnout. Gathered around the room were Francis Somsel, a clean-cut progressive Democrat; Benjamin Vanderford, 22-year-old political independent, musician and video-game programmer; California

[GeronL]

see #19-

maybe the same guy???