BBC: British Iraq hostage Kember freed ~ by Iraq Coalition Forces

KEMBER'S HOSTAGE ORDEAL

TOP STORIES

British Iraq hostage Kember freed

US hostage confirmed dead

Kember tape aired on Arab TV

Kember's wife in hostage plea

Muslim group issues Kember plea

British hostage 'a man of peace'

REACTION

'Right to go'
Peace campaigner Bruce Kent supports Norman Kember's decision to go to Iraq

Full text: Straw statement

In quotes: Delight and relief

BACKGROUND

How Iraq hostages were freed

'Normality the key to moving on'

Peacemaker wanted to do more

Timeline: Kember abduction

Profile: Kember's peace group

Profiles: Canadian hostages

VIDEO AND AUDIO

Reports and background

HAVE YOUR SAY

Hostages freed: Your reaction

Out of all of those links, one works. That's why Mozilla sucks!

Earlier breaking thread:

Christian Aid Workers Freed In Iraq

I am glad they are safe, but why were they there in the first place. Our troops have better things to do than hunt for a group of grandstanders.

Sure...they're delighted and relieved to be free, but not one word of thanks for their rescuers. We should give them back to the terrorists.

What does Mozilla have to do with it?

To hear the MSM talk, these three wackos just hippety-hopped their way out of their captors' clutches.

Who rescued them? CPT hasn't mentioned their rescuers at all.

I hate these people.

That's because in their own words, they were released, not freed.

What a load of crap! Not one thank you to the "occupiers" that helped free these ungrateful, twisted people.

Here is the "Peacemakers" press release:

Statement By Christian Peacemaker Teams

“Our hearts are filled with joy today as we heard that Harmeet Singh Sooden, Jim Loney and Norman Kember have been safely released in Baghdad. Christian Peacemaker Teams rejoices with their families and friends at the expectation of their return to their loved ones and community.

"Together we have endured uncertainty, hope, fear, grief and now joy during the four months since they were abducted in Baghdad.

“We rejoice in the return of Harmeet Sooden. He has been willing to put his life on the line to promote justice in Iraq and Palestine as a young man newly committed to active peacemaking.

“We rejoice in the return of Jim Loney. He has cared for the marginalized and oppressed since childhood, and his gentle, passionate spirit has been an inspiration to people near and far.

“We rejoice in the return of Norman Kember. He is a faithful man, an elder and mentor to many in his 50 years of peacemaking, a man prepared to pay the cost.

“We remember with tears Tom Fox, whose body was found in Baghdad on March 9, 2006, after three months of captivity with his fellow peacemakers. We had longed for the day when all four men would be released together.

"Our gladness today is made bittersweet by the fact that Tom is not alive to join in the celebration. However, we are confident that his spirit is very much present in each reunion.

“Harmeet, Jim and Norman and Tom were in Iraq to learn of the struggles facing the people in that country. They went, motivated by a passion for justice and peace to live out a nonviolent alternative in a nation wracked by armed conflict.

"They knew that their only protection was in the power of the love of God and of their Iraqi and international co-workers.

"We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by Multinational Forces is the root cause of the insecurity which led to this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq. The occupation must end.

“Today, in the face of this joyful news, our faith compels us to love our enemies even when they have committed acts which caused great hardship to our friends and sorrow to their families.

"In the spirit of the prophetic nonviolence that motivated Jim, Norman, Harmeet and Tom to go to Iraq, we refuse to yield to a spirit of vengeance.

“We give thanks for the compassionate God who granted our friends courage and who sustained their spirits over the past months.

"We pray for strength and courage for ourselves so that, together, we can continue the nonviolent struggle for justice and peace.

“Throughout these difficult months, we have been heartened by messages of concern for our four colleagues from all over the world. We have been especially moved by the gracious outpouring of support from Muslim brothers and sisters in the Middle East, Europe, and North America.

"That support continues to come to us day after day.

“We pray that Christians throughout the world will, in the same spirit, call for justice and for respect for the human rights of the thousands of Iraqis who are being detained illegally by the U.S. and British forces occupying Iraq.

“During these past months, we have tasted of the pain that has been the daily bread of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. Why have our loved ones been taken? Where are they being held? Under what conditions? How are they? Will they be released? When?

“With Tom’s death, we felt the grief of losing a beloved friend. Today, we rejoice in the release of our friends Harmeet, Jim and Norman. We continue to pray for a swift and joyful homecoming for the many Iraqis and internationals who long to be reunited with their families.

"We renew our commitment to work for an end to the war and the occupation of Iraq as a way to continue the witness of Tom Fox. We trust in God’s compassionate love to show us the way.

“Living through the many emotions of this day, we remain committed to the words of Jim Loney, who wrote:

"With God’s abiding kindness, we will love even our enemies.
With the love of Christ, we will resist all evil.
With God’s unending faithfulness, we will work to build the beloved community."

March 23, 2006

From the BBC:

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Full text: Straw statement

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Full text: Straw statement

Here is the full text of Jack Straw's statement on the release of hostage Norman Kember:

I'm very pleased to be able to say that the three hostages - Norman Kember, British hostage, and two Canadian hostages - have been released as a result of a multinational force operation which took place earlier today.

British forces were involved in this operation. It follows weeks and week of very careful work by military and coalition personnel in Iraq, and many civilians as well.

I have, on the two occasions that I've been to Iraq since Christmas, spoken to the great team that has been involved in trying to secure the release of these hostages and I'm delighted that now we have a happy ending to this terrible ordeal for Norman Kember, for his family, for the Canadian hostages and for their families as well.

I spoke about half an hour ago to Mrs Kember. The Foreign Office have kept in very close touch with her, and I have spoken to her from time to time and of course, it goes without saying that she is absolutely delighted, elated, with this news.

But the family will need time and space to deal with what is happy news, and I hope that the British and international media will respect their wishes here.

There is one last very sad point, which is that there were four hostages captured originally, including one, an American, Mr Fox, and it is a matter of great sorrow to everybody that he was killed a little while ago.

A Pathetic CHRISTIAN Organization for sure......

From the BBC article:

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The foreign secretary said no shots had been fired during the operation, which followed "weeks and weeks of very careful work by military and coalition personnel in Iraq and many civilians as well".

From the AAAAP:

**********************************************

Today: March 23, 2006 at 7:11:16 PST

Three Christian Activists Rescued in Iraq

By BASSEM MROUE
ASSOCIATED PRESS

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -

0323dvs-hostages-freed U.S. and British troops Thursday freed three Christian peace activists in rural Iraq without firing a shot, ending a four-month hostage drama in which an American among the group was shot to death and dumped on a Baghdad street.

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, the U.S. military spokesman, said the hostages were being held by a "kidnapping cell" in a house in western Baghdad, and the operation to free the captives was based on information from a man captured by U.S. forces only three hours earlier.

"They were bound, they were together, there were no kidnappers in the areas," Lynch told a news briefing.

He also said military operations concerning other hostages were ongoing, "probably as a result of what we're finding at this time."

Still missing is Jill Carroll, a freelance writer for The Christian Science Monitor who was kidnapped Jan. 7 in Baghdad. She has appeared in three videotapes delivered by her kidnappers to Arab satellite television stations.

When asked whether he any information about Carroll, Lynch said: "None that I can discuss at this time."

"There are other operations that continue probably as a result of what we're finding at this time," Lynch said. "So you've got to give us the opportunity to work through that."

The Iraqi Interior Ministry said the three captives were rescued northwest of Baghdad between the towns of Mishahda, 20 miles away from Baghdad, and the western suburb of Abu Ghraib, 12 miles away.

British officials in Baghdad said those freed were Canadians James Loney, 41, and Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32, and Briton Norman Kember, 74. The men - members of the Chicago-based Christian Peacemaker Teams - were kidnapped Nov. 26 along with their American colleague, Tom Fox.

The body of Fox, 54, of Clear Brook, Va., was found earlier this month.

"We remember with tears Tom Fox," group co-director Doug Pritchard said. "We had longed for the day when all four men would be released together. Our gladness today is bittersweet by the fact that Tom is not alive to join his colleagues in the celebration."

In London, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said Kember was in "reasonable condition" in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone. The two Canadians required hospital treatment, but he gave no further details.

Straw also gave few details of the operation, saying only that it followed "weeks and weeks" of planning.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair's office said he was delighted by the trio's release.

"He is particularly pleased for those released and their families. He congratulates everyone involved in the operation to rescue the hostages," his office said in a statement.

Loney's brother, Ed, told CBC television that his mother had spoken with James on the phone and he sounded "fantastic."

"He's alert and he was asking how we were doing and said he was sorry for the whole situation," Ed Loney said. "My mom said, 'Don't worry about it - just get home and we'll talk about all that stuff when you get here.'"

The kidnapped men were shown as prisoners in several videos, the most recent a silent clip dated Feb. 28 in which Loney, Kember and Sooden appeared without Fox. Fox's body was found March 10 near a west Baghdad railway line with gunshot wounds to his head and chest.

Iraqi police said at the time it appeared that Fox had been tortured because he had bruises and cuts on his body, apparently inflicted before he was shot to death.

But Claire Evans of CPT in Chicago said two group members viewed Fox's body at a military base in Dover, Del., and said it showed no signs of torture.

The previously unknown Swords of Righteousness Brigades claimed responsibility for the kidnappings.

"As we study who could conduct these kinds of operations there seems to be a kidnapping cell that has been robust over the last several months in conducting these kind of kidnappings," Lynch said.

In Fox's hometown, some of his friends learned of the rescues on the television.

"I think there's a bittersweet element to this in that yes, our friend Tom isn't coming home," said Anne Bacon, clerk of the Hopewell Centre Quaker meeting where Fox volunteered. "But we know Tom is with us and that Tom is overjoyed that these men will be reunited with their families."

The Christian Peacemaker Teams said the activists went to Iraq "motivated by a passion for justice and peace." Group volunteers have been in Iraq since October 2002, investigating allegations of abuse against Iraqi detainees by coalition forces. Its teams promote peaceful solutions in conflict zones.

"They knew that their only protection was in the power of the love of God and of their Iraqi and international co-workers," Pritchard said.

He also called for coalition forces to leave the country.

"We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by Multinational Forces is the root cause of the insecurity which led to this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq," Pritchard said.

Other Americans taken hostage in Iraq and killed in addition to Fox were Ronald Schulz, 40, an industrial electrician from Anchorage, Alaska; Jack Hensley, 48, a civil engineer from Marietta, Ga.; Eugene "Jack" Armstrong, 52, formerly of Hillsdale, Mich.; and Nicholas Berg, 26, a businessman from West Chester, Pa.

The last hostage to be freed in a military operation was Douglas Wood, an Australian rescued in west Baghdad by U.S. and Iraqi forces on June 15 after 47 days in captivity.

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On the Net:

Christian Peacemaker Teams: http://www.cpt.org/

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Associated Press reporters Jill Lawless in London; Beth Duff-Brown in Toronto; and Terri Nelson in Richmond, Va., contributed to this report.

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Gee, I sure hope the detainee who gave up the info wasn't "tortured" into spilling the beans. Maybe this group should look into that next, since it is all the fault of the illegal occupation anyway.

And the people that rescued them are still called "Occupiers" by them and they are still sympathetic to the thugs that kidnapped them and killed a co-worker.

Idiots. With their attitude, I'm not rejoicing for their rescue. The "Multi-national" forces could have been used for more grateful people and better things.

No shots were fired..... but they didnt say anything about Grenades.

I hate to see the troops put at risk saving these underminers from their own "Useful Idiocy".

Has anyone from this so-called Christian Peace group or the families, or, heaven forbid, these hostages, bothered to thank the TROOPS WHO RECUED THEM!? Seems like only the politicians bothered to mention them at all.

And the idiots at DU are claiming Fox was killed by "US black ops", not his captors. Unbelievable. Thank God no military personnel were killed or injured. These people are not worth it.

From the Michelle Malkin Blog:

TALK ABOUT UNGRATEFUL
By Michelle Malkin · March 23, 2006 08:04 AM

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Our troops teamed with British forces to rescue three left-wing, anti-war activists kidnapped by terrorists in Iraq. Those freed were Canadians James Loney, 41, and Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32; and Briton Norman Kember, 74. The men, who were members of the Chicago-based Christian Peacemaker Teams, were kidnapped on Nov. 26 along with their American colleague, Tom Fox, 54, whose body was found earlier this month.

Reader Jen M. took at look at the Christian Peacemaker Teams website for the group's statement on the rescue and she e-mailed me her observations:

Not once do they thank or even reference the fact that a Special Forces team rescued these guys. In fact, the only reference to military at all is blaming them for the kidnapping in the first place. Nice!
Also on their home page is a long statement about how terribly treated terrorists are when detained by evil soldiers.

Read the full statement for yourselves here.

For crying out loud.

***

Many readers note that the CPT statement refers to the hostages' "release" instead of their rescue. Reader Matt L. writes to CPT:

Congratulations on the safe return of your activists. I'm sorry they did not all make it home safely. I read your press release relating the "release" of the activists; please note that they were not released, they were rescued. The term release implies that their captors let them go. You know that is not true, they were rescued by a team of American and British soldiers who risked their lives to free people whom apparently have no gratitude for their actions. It is one thing to be against war and the actions of our military (I'm not justifying that position, just acknowledging your right to it), but another to deny when they SAVED YOUR ASS!!!! Are you so insecure in your position that you think even acknowledging your people were rescued, not "released" would undermine your whole message that the military serves no useful purpose? Actually, I think you are correct in your assumption, so I guess you should stick to your story lest any of your supporters start to use logic and reason to dissect your beliefs. Where would you be then? I guess you might have to begrudgingly join the rest of society who realizes that a strong military is the best defense of a free nation against tyrants and terrorists who are out to destroy us and our way of life. God bless you, and I hope you quit sending your hippies to WAR regions risking not only their lives but the lives of the soldiers who end up having to secure their "release" by RESCUING them.

Reader Jack T. shares his e-mail to CPT:

Sisters and Brothers,
I am a Christian living in San Francisco. I support the Iraq War.
Regarding your statement on the release of your fellow Peacemakers: How about giving thanks to the US and British soldiers who rescued your friends from terrorists?
They weren't released by good-hearted terrorists or by international good will . It took the coalition forces to do it. Those forces have also rescued Afghanistan and Iraq from brutal dictatorships that have terrorized and imprisoned millions of people. Setting the captives free can take many forms and I think you could show some gratitude for that.
If you have the faith to love your enemies, you might consider loving your friends and rescuers too.

Reader Bob T. notes moonbat fever at the BBC:

With regard to the former hostages from the "Christian" "Peacemaker" Teams, Britain seems afflicted with "released" vs. "rescued" syndrome. Indeed the only ones who mention the military operation in this article express concern about it, as if the good-hearted kidnappers were about to free them any day. Tony Blair's contribution from a spokeman is dissapointing, and the comment from a former Gitmo detainee is beyond unctuous.

***

Thank the troops here.