Posted on 04/13/2005 7:58:09 AM PDT by Sax
U.S. Hostage in Iraq Appeals for Life on Video-TV
15 minutes ago Top Stories - Reuters
DUBAI (Reuters) - An American contractor taken hostage in Iraq has urged the U.S. government to negotiate with his captors to save his life, according to a video broadcast by Al Jazeera television on Wednesday.
Latest headlines: · U.S. Hostage in Iraq Appeals for Life on Video-TV Reuters - 13 minutes ago · US hostage urges Washington to quit Iraq: Al-Jazeera AFP - 21 minutes ago · Iraq Violence Flares as U.S.'s Zoellick Visits Reuters - 30 minutes ago Special Coverage
The video showed the man, named by the U.S. embassy in Baghdad as Jeffrey Ake from Indiana, holding up his passport as armed and masked insurgents stood at his side.
Ake was seized from the site of a reconstruction project near Baghdad on Monday. It is not known who he was working for.
Al Jazeera said the hostage "urged the U.S. administration to open a dialogue with the Iraqi resistance ... to save his life."
He also called on U.S. forces to swiftly withdraw from Iraq, the Arabic television channel said.
Dressed in a light shirt, Ake looked nervous on the video, which showed him behind a desk and reading from a statement.
The group behind the kidnapping was not named and no flag or identifying banner was shown, as has been common in several previous tapes of hostages.
More than 150 foreigners have been kidnapped in Iraq in the past year, either by Muslim militant groups seeking to drive out foreign troops or criminal gangs demanding ransom. About a third of those kidnapped have been killed.
A French journalist, Florence Aubenas, who was kidnapped in January, is still being held by militants, as are three Romanian journalists abducted last month.
Over the past year, Iraqi officials estimate that around 5,000 Iraqis have been kidnapped, most of them by criminal gangs looking to profit from ransoms.
"Over the past year, Iraqi officials estimate that around 5,000 Iraqis have been kidnapped, most of them by criminal gangs looking to profit from ransoms." -nice folks these Iraqis. Religion of peace and all that.
"urged the U.S. administration to open a dialogue with the Iraqi resistance ... to save his life."
Sorry, no negotiations. They should know that by now.
It makes sense - seems like an infrastructure related business that mentions overseas work. Prayers for Mr. Ake.
Prayers for him and his family. God still does miracles.
As a former expat I have mixed feelings about this...When you go abroad for the big bucks you are on your own. Individual decision. Its not the guvs job to protect you in other countries. But my heart goes out to this guy and his family...Hopefully this will end ok.
Folks working over there should be armed at all times.
They might have better luck appealing to the Italian government.
Yes, I hope the best for him too.
I agree with YOBID- all workers should be armed-if they are taken hostage chances are they are going to die so I would prefer to defend myself on the spot and die there trying or kill the ba------ and maybe it would be a deterent to other jerks trying to take our citizens as hostages.
Depraved is what I think of al Jazeera.They get great pleasure in showing these pictures and the fact that al Jazeera is broadcasting them shows exactly how unhinged the enemy has become. If these barbarians actually believe this kind of behavior will weaken American resolve, they just don't know Americans.
Award-winning company has role in Iraq Equipment Express President Jeff Ake inspects fill heads on a water bottle filling machine at his plant in Rolling Prairie. In 2003 the business was awarded a Growth 100 Award for the second time by Indiana University's Kelley School of Business, Johnson Center for Entrepreneurship. Tribune Photo PAUL RAKESTRAW
Why(if he's a CEO)didn't he have proper security?
Maybe he outsourced his security to locals?
Flame all you want but history proves that it works.
Our problem is that we don't ever learn from history.
You would think that that would be the case. We were told that we didn't need weapons, the Army would protect us. Our security detail only had radios...
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