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Posted on 04/08/2004 10:27:20 AM PDT by yonif
Israel will use diplomatic means to try to free two Arabs from East Jerusalem said to have been kidnapped by insurgents in Iraq, Minister Gideon Ezra said Thursday.
Speaking to Channel Two television, Ezra said Israel would try through diplomacy to get them "out of the clutches of evil."
Iranian television station Al-Alam said Thursday that the two men - identified as Ahmed Yassin Tikati, 33, and Nabil George Yaakob Razuq, 30 - were kidnapped by the Ansar a-Din group and showed footage of the abductees, who Israeli media said were Christians from East Jerusalem. In the broadcast, both men said they were international aid workers.
The Foreign Ministry has not confirmed the report.
The Iranian broadcast said Razuq and Tikati were Israeli and aired photographs of an Israeli identity card, a Macabbi HMO card, an Israeli driver's licence and a local supermarket card, as well as a driver's licence issued by the U.S. state of Georgia and a student card from Augusta College in Georgia. Relatives of Razuq told reporters he had attended university in Georgia.
However, there is some dispute over the nationality of the men said kidnapped.
Minister Gideon Ezra said both men were residents of East Jerusalem, but not citizens of Israel.
"They are not Israeli citizens," Ezra told Channel Two. "They are not couriers or agents of the Mossad," he said, referring to charges that the two work for Israel's intelligence agency.
But Razuq's uncle, Samir Razuq, told Army Radio on Thursday that his nephew is an Israeli citizen and holds an Israeli passport, and that he has no other citizenship.
Palestinians from East Jerusalem are issued with Israeli identity cards. They are eligible for Israeli citizenship, although few apply for it.
Samir Razuq said Thursday his newphew worked in Israel for USAID, the United States Agency for International Development, and left for Iraq to work for the agency two or three months ago. Nabil Razuq lives in the Beit Hanina neighborhood of East Jerusalem and is married to a woman from the Czech Republic, his uncle said.
The abductors said in the broadcast they intended to negotiate over the captives.
"We are a religious faction," a masked man said in the tape. "We have captured spies who belong to the Zionist enemy, and we demand the immediate release of all the prisoners who belong to the religious factions [in Iraq], especially the women. We will negotiate over these two captives."
Family of one of Arab residents of East Jerusalem abducted in Iraq asks Yasser Arafat to intervene (Channel 2)
Min. Gideon Ezra: 2 men said kidnapped in Iraq are East Jerusalem residents, but not Israeli citizens (Channel 2)
Uncle of Nabil Razuq, reported to be abducted in Iraq, says he worked for USAID organization
More news from Israel National News:
Hostage Identified as Jerusalem Jeweler
20:04 Apr 08, '04 / 17 Nisan 5764
(IsraelNN.com) Ynet online is reporting that one of the two Israeli Arabs held hostage in Iraq has been identified as George Razouk, a northern capital jeweler in his thirties. Family members report that in the 1990s, George traveled to the United States where he married, adding they do not know what business brought him to Iraq, denying sporadic reports that he is a member of the press.
Regarding earlier reports that the two Israeli Arab hostages are employees of USAID, an organization spokesperson quoted by Ynet online could not confirm the reports, adding the matter is under investigation.
Israeli Hostages in Iraq are Employees of US Aid
19:19 Apr 08, '04 / 17 Nisan 5764
(IsraelNN.com) Samir, a Jerusalem resident and an uncle of one of the Israeli Arabs apprehended in Iraq told Israel Television that his nephew is an employee of US Aid, a humanitarian organization who departed for Iraq approximately 2-3 months ago.
At this time it remains unclear regarding the nationality of the two, with some reports indicating only one is an Israeli, a resident of the eastern capital.
A film released by the captors revealed the Israeli identity card and other documentation attesting to the identity of Samir’s nephew.
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That is a thought. Perhaps Israel should put up all their Arabs as security and prolong negotiations as long as possible.
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