Two German GSG-9 (Anti-Terrorist Unit) Employees Missing in Iraq

Spiegel-Online ^ | April 10, 2004 | Spiegel-Online

[longjack]

This breaking news item was put up on "Spiegel" about 6:30 AM EDT.

Two members of the crack German Anti-terrorist Unit GSG-9 are missing after an ambush on a convoy going to Baghdad from Amman, Jordan last Wednesday.

There have been no indications of a kidnapping thus far. The attack occured near Fallujah. Vehicles that escaped the ambush reached the embassy later.

"Spiegel-Online"....Zwei deutsche GSG-9-Mitarbeiter im Irak vermisst

longjack

[longjack]

the GSG-9 is the Anti-Terror unit that was established after the olympic killings in 1972. They are famous for the rescue of the Entebbe hostages.

I'm not sure if this is significant, but I decided to put it out here as general information.

Curious that the Germans didn't announce this until today. Also, the report thus far only says a convoy was ambushed on the way from Amman to Baghdad. A paragraph later the report says that remaining vehicles reached the embassy. It didn't specifically say which embassy, but I assume the German embassy.

longjack

[longjack]

German ping.

I'll be on the road today. If any other info comes out on this perhaps other Freepers can add updates.

Happy Easter, all.

longjack

[Neets]

Scoop

[Glenn]

Thanks. I can rest easy now.

[Neets]

You think this needs more SeasonAll?

[elhombrelibre]

I think Entebbe was the IDF rescue. I'm thinking the German rescue - 1978, I think - was in Somalia. Both were great uses of force against barbarians.

[elhombrelibre]

The Entebbe Rescue Mission
... The Entebbe Rescue Mission. On June 27, 1976, four terrorists forced an Air France Airbus to land in Uganda, in the ...
www.us-israel.org/jsource/Terrorism/entebbe.html

[longjack]

You're probably right, Thanks

I did a quick google to check it out. Mogadishu defintely appeared, and Entebbe as well. I'm kind of rushed now, so I put Entebbe in the post without much detailed checking. Entebbe stuck in my mind for some reason.

I'm not exactly sure what the Entebbe connection is, though. The Google hits were related with Entebbe and Badder-Meinoff.

longjack

[elhombrelibre]

It was Mogadishu where GSG-9 rescued Germans who'd been hijacked. Around the same time, the Dutch rescued a train that was being held by South Moluccans, by the way. There have been small victories against terrorists.

[longjack]

I see where I made my mistake. Ulrich Wegener created the GSG-9. He modelled it after the Israeli Sayeret Mat'kal. The rumor was Wegener was at Entebbe. I confused GSG-9 and Entebbe when I saw the google titles on the search results.

Nice background Info here: Specialoperations.com....Germany Grenzschutzgruppe 9 (GSG-9)

excerpt..

Born out of history and tragedy, GSG-9 was created right after the 1972 Munich Olympic massacre, to combat the ever growing terrorism. Created within the Federal Border Police (Bundesgrenzshutz), and not the military, to avoid the impression of a new SS, the creation of the unit was give the go-ahead on September 8, 1972. Placed in command was Ulrich Wegener. An expert on counter terrorism, he modeled the GSG-9 after the Israeli Sayeret Mat'kal. It was even rumored that Wegener took part in the Israeli rescue in Entebbe.

longjack

[elhombrelibre]

Amazing when you think about it that a German policeman was getting training on how to stop terrorism from an Israeli. Too bad so many of the Germans decided terrorism is best stopped by ignoring it.

[longjack]

Different people were running Germany in 1972.

Now, it wouldn't surprise me if the Germans reacted to a Madrid-style attack just as the Spanish did.

In this case the next reports will most likely be that U.S. actions drove the Iraqis to attack the convoy. It's Bush's fault.

longjack

[longjack]

Latest update on "Spiegel" now says that Germany's n-tv is reporting that an Iraqi paper has published pictures of the two missing persons, although the reporter himself hasn't ssen them. The paper (I am assuming they mean the Iraqi paper) says the Germans are being held by an Iraqi resistance group.

The Germany embassy in Iraq has advised all Germans to use extreme caution and to leave Iraq.

So, according to this report, they were kidnapped.

....Zwei deutsche GSG-9-Mitarbeiter im Irak vermisst

longjack

[wretchard]

The kidnapping and probable interrogation and torture of these GSG-9 personnel has all the hallmarks of a professional intelligence operation. This is probably only the tip of the iceberg. A lot of people are disappearing on both sides. This is for keeps.

[longjack]

Thanks.

The article caught my interest this morning. It seemed important, somehow. I was wondering why the acknowledgement didn't come out until now.

I'm hedaed out right now. I hope other freepers will keep us up to snuff on updates coming out of Germany.

longjack

[Dutch Boy]

It seems that the terrorists extermination is the only cure. I wonder how far Iraq would be if everyone actually worked for the same goal. They would have clean water, electricity, jobs, etc... They also would have sovereignty. It boogles my mind that it's not obvious to the people that want us to go home. The quicker the country is rebuilt the quicker we can leave.

[americanbychoice2]

Bush kannte Angriffspläne

Bereits mehr als einen Monat vor dem 11. September 2001 wurde US-Präsident George W. Bush angeblich über geplante Flugzeugentführungen durch El Kaida-Terroristen in den Vereinigten Staaten informiert.

Bush knew about the plans.

Even more than a month before September 11th Us President Bush was alledgedly informed about planned Airplane hijackings by Al quaida in the United States.

This is a headline in "Diewelt.de"
Don't you just love their "fair and balanced" approach to reporting the news.
Their readers eat ant anti- americanism up.

[knighthawk]

http://newsobserver.com/24hour/world/story/1278377p-8378126c.html

Germany security agents missing in Iraq


By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BERLIN (AP) - Two security agents from the German Embassy in Baghdad have been missing for several days, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Saturday.
But, "there is no evidence of a kidnapping," the spokeswoman said, on customary condition of anonymity.
She would not give further details, but ZDF and ARD television reported that the missing were two Germans, 38- and 25-years-old, who were traveling from Amman, Jordan to Baghdad on a routine trip Wednesday and were ambushed.

The stations reported that other vehicles in the convoy reached the embassy later.

ARD television reported that the two were agents with GSG-9, an elite counterterrorism unit trained for freeing hostages and other commando missions.

Along with violence in central and southern Iraq this week, there has been a rash of kidnappings by militants, including of foreign civilians.

[archy]

I think Entebbe was the IDF rescue. I'm thinking the German rescue - 1978, I think - was in Somalia. Both were great uses of force against barbarians.

Both. GSG9 commander Ulrich Wegener was along with the Israelis at Entebbe, where he was slightly bayonetted by a Ugandan soldier. Who was somewhat more effectively dissuaded from further such activity by Wegener, who had arranged the supply of silenced American Ingram M10 submachineguns and other specialized equipment for the Israelis, including possibly a Mercedes limosine identical to Idi Amin's.

GSG-9 made its reputation on the night of October 17, 1977, when they stormed a hi-jacked Lufthansa plane in Mogadishu, Somalia, rescuing all 90 hostages and killing three of the four hijackers.

Ulrich K. Wegener with German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt in 1977.

[STFrancis]

Okay, GSG-9 aren't security agents and they are not in Iraq to be picking daisies. Wonder what the heck they where doing there...???

These are crack troops on the same level as Seal Team 6 etc.. The best of the best... What the heck are they doing there...??? They work at the German Embassy..? maybe as protection..? or doing what..??? Oh.. the wicked webs we weave...