Ceasefire collapses, US hostage taken in Iraq

abc.net.au ^ | AM - Saturday, 10 April , 2004 08:00:58 | Peter Cave

[Destro]

Transcript

This is a transcript from AM. The program is broadcast around Australia at 08:00 on ABC Local Radio.

You can also listen to the story in REAL AUDIO and WINDOWS MEDIA formats.

Ceasefire collapses, US hostage taken in Iraq

AM - Saturday, 10 April , 2004 08:00:58

Reporter: Peter Cave

TANYA NOLAN: It's the day after the 12-month anniversary of the toppling of Saddam's regime, and things appear bloodier than ever in Iraq.

The ceasefire called by US troops in Fallujah less than 24-hours ago seems to have already collapsed, with mortar rounds ringing out across the Sunni city where 450 Iraqis have died this week.

America has announced the death of six more of it's soldiers, taking the number of US troops killed since Shia unrest erupted on Sunday, to 39.

Meanwhile, insurgents are taking more foreign hostages, an alarming new strategy being used to try and drive coalition forces out of Iraq.

Our own ABC staff on the ground in Iraq have witnessed the taking of the latest hostage.

Hundreds of Sunni Mujahideen or Holy warriors armed with rocket propelled grenades, attacked a convoy of oil tankers taking fuel to US forces besieged in the town of Fallujah, destroying at least a dozen trucks and killing or wounding several drivers.

For hours, the Mujahideen ruled the main east-west highway in Iraq, where they took at least one American hostage.

Our Foreign Affairs Editor Peter Cave reports how he and his cameraman, Michael Cox, were taken by members of the Mujahideen to film the latest hostage, whose fate remains unknown.

PETER CAVE: It was a huge pall of thick black smoke billowing high into the air, west of the capital, that attracted our attention. As we drove closer we passed a burnt out oil tanker, a gaping hole in its side, then another and another.

(Audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: There appears to have been a major attack on oil facilities on the road just up ahead. There are three major fires burning up there with smoke going high into the sky, and just beside us here, an oil tanker is well on fire.

(End audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: But as we continued up the highway, it became clear it wasn't an oil facility, it was more oil tankers blazing furiously.

(Audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: On the road ahead, two oil tankers are burning. We've passed another half a dozen already on this road. There's been a major attack by Mujahideen. Just a short while ago, we spoke to an American who'd been taken prisoner by the Mujahideen.

(End audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: We'd been filming an oil tanker upside down in a ditch beside the road. Local people were braving the fierce heat trying to pull something from the cabin, most probably the driver, who was certainly dead.

(Audio of burning wreckage)

Suddenly, a large late model Toyota Saloon pulled up right in front of us.

(Audio of people speaking)

And three men, two of them masked, climbed out carrying assault rifles and insisted we look at the prize they had in the car.

(Audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: What's happened?

AMERICAN HOSTAGE: They attacked our convoy. That's all I'm going to say.

PETER CAVE: Okay.

(End audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: Their hostage, being held by two more masked men in the car, was wounded in the arm, his blue jeans covered in blood. He had blonde hair and a moustache and appeared more defiant than scared as they roughly yanked his head across so we could see his face.

(Audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: Do you want to give us your name?

AMERICAN HOSTAGE: Hamil (phonetic), Thomas.

(Audio of banging on car roof)

MASKED MAN: Go, go.

PETER CAVE: Okay, okay.

(Audio of car driving off)

(End audio excerpt recorded on scene)

PETER CAVE: As they drove off, another car full of armed Mujahideen pulled up.

"I swear in the name of Allah", he says, "we don't care about death or life, we're going to heaven. Death is welcome."

We had to driver some kilometres back towards Baghdad before we found any coalition troops. Several tanks and two APCs guarding an overpass and watching the huge palls of smoke on the road totally under the control of the Mujahideen.

(Audio excerpt recorded on scene)

AMERICAN SOLDIER: Just past that first burning tanker?

PETER CAVE: We're the first people on…

(End audio excerpt recorded on scene)

We reported the fate of the American hostage but there was no immediate move to mount a rescue.

(Audio of crowd chanting)

Several more kilometres down the road and tens of thousands have gathered chanting "Jihad", or "holy war" in the huge Sunni mosque Saddam built on the western edge of Baghdad.

(Audio of speaker yelling through loudspeaker)

The speaker says, "we will say no with one voice. You Americans will not pass through here. There is no legitimacy in the new Iraq, except for those who fight."

This is Peter Cave in Baghdad, for Saturday AM.

[CGVet58]

Europe (save for the former soviet bloc, and possibly Britain & Italy...) is lost; our concern must be what happens in the United States.

Islamic immigration already approaches 5% of the population here, the historically noted "critical mass" of 10% - when islamic ex-patriates start spreading hatred and discontent - is coming up fast in the rear-view mirror. There is another aspect to this influx, the proselytization of native Americans to their religion.

This conversion is notable for the cross-section of Americans it has targetted and for its success in the same - the "disenfranchised" minorities (Blacks and Hispanics), especially amongst our prison populations. As an American of Hispanic ancestry, I am alarmed that many Puerto Ricans in our our jail system are converting to Islam, and it's the Wahhabi strain they're subscribing to. This is a problem which will stay with us, irrespective of whatever we do about the islamic invasion coming to our shores under the guise of immigration.

Irrespective of whether the prison population can be accurately characterized as a bunch of losers or not, these people are still Americans. Whereas, for example, I do not think it too far-fetched to imagine an America in the near future that recognizes the threat above and either severely curtails or halts Islamic immigration (if not actual re-patriation to their native lands...), the same could not be applied to those born here who have been infected by the poison of Wahhabism. How to deal with that issue?

My concern about this goes beyond the the level of Islam vs America. I see our Nation still in the grip of socialist ideological practices, like current group policies such as AA or the fratricidal practice of abortion. The islamists see us foremost as the enemy; as they convert what-is-already an uneducated, unpatriotic, angry mob of men - most of whom belong to one of the groups whom the Left uses as a pawn in America today - they are triangulating upon the divisions which already exist in our Country. In short, they clearly understand the divisions in our society, and use these factors upon an ignorant population (notable for it's use of violence) to further divide and conquer us. Nor was it a difficult thing for the islamists to recognize... after all, what's the one group of people in this country who have the most in common with the illiterate, angry, demonstrably violent and easily manipulated arab youths from their homelands (and from whom they readily recruit their jihadists...)? - our convicts, most of whom are black or hispanic and blame "Whitey" for their lot in life, anyway.

I don't have any answers on how to deal with this aspect of the threat, save to dourly (but resolutely!) say that we're in this for the long haul.

CGVet58

Days like this, I thank God for the 2nd Amendment... and the United States Marine Corps!!!!

[DoughtyOne]

I don't see how any thinking person could miss the implications of what you describe. It's true and it's here and now.

This isn't a damnation of Moslems, even though I beleive the case could pretty much be made. Frankly I don't care what lifestyle they choose to live under as long as they do it in their homeland and not ours. If they wish to mutilate their female children, kill each other in endless feuds, I say let them go for it as long as they do it in their own homeland.

Where I'm coming from is that until the Moslem religion gets it's act together and adopts the brighter aspects of at least the 17th century, member of this religion would be better served to be segregated and living with their own kind in dirt hovels, if that's what they choose. And obviously, it is.

Take care.

[Two-Bits]

Was the war in Serbia necessary?

[Texasforever]

He had blonde hair and a moustache and appeared more defiant than scared

Damn.

[Hun in the sun]

"Besides, I gave away no info on company, location or names. These emails from the field aare posted all the time. I edited mine due to personal info & curse words."

Sorry, didn`t mean to offend you in any way...

It`s just the small details, you know...

No one in this well-known leftist forum knew that private
security companies (they call them "soldiers of fortune")
are using PKM`s (Pulemyot Kalaschnikova Modernizirovanniy),
in other words: russian/iraqi equipment.

This fact *is*, in military terms, a valuable
information.

Regards,
Hun

[Hun in the sun]

"I do like how they translated my screen name to : Fein, Schwein..."

:o)

..here is the full translation:

Fein, Schwein... leck mich am Arsch

Hun

[janette]

this is what I wrote on another thread, when we learned, that the hostage is American:

and why took it so long, to tell us, that he is an American?
Why was his picture digitalized, why could I find the article and his picture in the European News Papers, while in the States on the Internet was written, he is Australian?
The reason might be, that nobody really wants to know or not to learn, that the sh.t h.t the f.n.
I'm sorry but I'm deeply sad and frustrated and I just don't want more people killed!!! This might not be a typical Freeper Statement, but that's the way I feel right now.....depressed and praying for an very soon end of this not so well ongoing "Freedom for Iraq" For me it seems like all the actions where never thought threw to the end, and they thought it might end like after WW2, with white flags, flowers and celebrations! Compare the culture the American Soldiers had to deal with, and what they have to deal with now. There is nothing to compare, as sad as it is. Forget about, creating Democracy in Iraq. As much as I wish, the people could get it, but the demographic situation doesn't give "our western Democracy" any chance. I might be wrong, but that's what triggers my sadness right now. Like we say on my island in Germany: "I can't see land!"

[Destro]

You hit it right on the head.

[Texasforever]

Why? Because the family had not been notified. That is why.

[Wolfhound777]

Several more kilometres down the road and tens of thousands have gathered chanting "Jihad", or "holy war" in the huge Sunni mosque Saddam built on the western edge of Baghdad.

These must be the innocent Iraqis in Fallujah that the US media states the US is using disproportionate force against. I am in utter contempt of our media now.

[Rutabega]

I saw this news clip yesterday evening on Swedish news, and it made my blood run cold. The look of insanity in the terrorists eyes could not be mistaken, and I was so disturbed. I just wanted the journalist to do something to get the man out of the situation, but, wasn't sure what he could do. The terrorists looked very nervous, and I felt the hostage was being very brave and definitely defiant. I don't pray often enough, but have been keeping a running prayer in my mind since last night for this brave man.

[Matthew James]

bttt

[Feiny]

No offense taken, but I am sure that the people in that lefty forum don't know alot of things about the actions over there. They are mostly idiots....as you can see from the extended translation you posted. Very classy folks.

[Feiny]

Just so you know, the fact that they are using these weapons is common knowledge. The Iraqis have them too.

http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/Region2.asp?ArticleID=116865

[CGVet58]

it is not a damnation of the muslim - to say that your words are so qualified would be to say that the ads focusing on Kerry's flip-flopping could actually be characterized as attacks. Both are similar, both are the truth.

An article fm the Wash Times posted on another FReeper thread today; almost prescient to our conversation:

http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20040410-114517-9568r.htm

And another item I googled recently which talks about conversion in US Prisons:

http://mediaguidetoislam.sfsu.edu/intheus/06c_converts.htm

A couple of notes from the above: "...It is estimated that more than 300,000 prisoners are currently converts to Islam and about 30,000 may be converting each year, according to scholar Jane I. Smith. Since the prison systems include a higher percentage of people of color, many of those converting are African Americans, Latinos and Native Americans..."

This is a long term problem which we'll have to deal with - right now, my prayers are with my USMC brothers... may their hearts be strong, their conduct beyond reproach, and their aim true.

CGVet58

[DoughtyOne]

Thanks for the links and the additional comments. I wonder why the ACLU isn't freaking out about these prison conversions. As if I didn't know already.

[JamesA]

I agree, pull our troops back and introduce the heathens to mr MOAB

[DannyTN]

Do demorats have the stomach to take on Syria and Iran? - Tax Government

Democrats didn't have the stomach for this war. They'd rather hide their heads in the sand.

One war at a time, please-Destro

We are already taking Syria and Iran on. The only question is whether we continue to allow them to wage a proxy war against us in Iraq, or whether we let the war come out in the open and take it to their capitals. I'm not really sure which is best, but I tend to want to eliminate the root cause of a problem.

[Tax Government]

We are already taking Syria and Iran on. The only question is whether we continue to allow them to wage a proxy war against us in Iraq, or whether we let the war come out in the open and take it to their capitals.

Let's acknowledge what they're doing, and go for the throat.