Posted on 03/23/2006 12:57:40 PM PST by aculeus
Briton Norman Kember and his Canadian colleagues James Loney and Harmeet Singh Sooden were freed after a multinational military raid acting on information provided by a detainee, the US military says.
The rescue was completed without any shots being fired and with no kidnappers present, suggesting the operation was carefully planned and carried out.
But the crucial bit of intelligence that enabled the rescue came only after two men were captured by US forces on Wednesday night.
One of the suspects had the information which led officials to the Baghdad house where the hostages were four months into their ordeal.
"We got that information at 0800 (0500 GMT) this morning and we conducted the operation," said Maj Gen Rick Lynch.
"We moved to the location in western Baghdad that was reported for the location of the Christian Peacemaker Team.
"We conducted an assault on the house and inside the house we found the three hostages, in good condition.
"There were no kidnappers there at the time. The three hostages were by themselves."
The hostages were bound, he said.
Hostage James Loney reportedly confirmed that one person had led the forces to where they were held.
In a telephone conversation with a friend, Mr Loney is said to have described the kidnappers as a criminal gang.
Gen Lynch described the men thought to be responsible as "a kidnapping cell that has been robust over the last several months in conducting these kind of kidnappings".
Textbook operation
Multinational special forces, police negotiators and Iraqi intermediaries were understood to have taken part in the rescue, says the BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner.
It was a textbook operation, our correspondent says.
The mission was spearheaded by British troops with the participation of forces from other coalition countries in Iraq.
"This was several weeks in the planning. It was an operation that was rolling, in a sense that it went on for some time," said the UK's Defence Secretary John Reid.
The multinational team included representatives from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
"Other agencies from Canada - they did a terrific job with us as well as the Americans," UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said.
The foreign secretary said civilians had been involved in the operation "in the background".
Announcing the hostage release in London, Mr Straw said: "Mercifully no shots were fired."
This was clearly a major success for the British-led force, says the BBC's defence correspondent Rob Watson.
Although foreign hostages have been freed in Iraq before, most were released as the result of secret negotiations, many involving the payment of ransom money, our correspondent adds.
But the body of the fourth member of the Christian Peacemaker Teams - US hostage Tom Fox - was found dumped in Baghdad nearly two weeks ago.
Kidnap victims
At least about 43 foreigners are still being held in Iraq.
And it is thought some 10 to 30 Iraqis are kidnapped every day - most of them for ransom.
Overall more than 400 foreigners have been taken hostage since the US-led invasion - about 55 of them have been killed by their captors.
But it does appear fewer foreigners are now being taken and fewer killed, says our correspondent.
Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2006/03/23 14:53:21 GMT
© BBC MMVI
That guy has the best name for any foreign official I've ever seen.
And of course, there was no danger of booby-traps, of snipers waiting to pick off soldiers, no danger whatever, right? Brave people do the right thing, regardless of the danger. The rest sit at their computers and pooh-pooh their efforts.
True. - but I remember that he did escape himself and was then found. rather than found sitting there.
He said this really pisses me off. He repeatedly asked her to answer his question which she repeatedly evaded. He was about as harsh toned as any I have heard on talk radio.
Good for him! Her type needs a good shake. Self imposed ignorance is no excuse for how they have behaved. I wish I could have heard him today.
I wonder how they got it out of him. Probably the peaceniks would be ticked off (as if they could get more selfish and peevish) to know.
The next time these "hostages" are found, don't waste your time "rescuing" them.
It seems they don't want to be rescued.
Yes, their spokesperson -- and their webpage -- claim they were released (not rescued).
Funny, that they used the words released. I wonder how they felt when the military untied them? I read that they were bound. I guess they would have us believe they were supernaturally released from their bondage?
ha!
"This was several weeks in the planning. It was an operation that was rolling, in a sense that it went on for some time," said the UK's Defence Secretary John Reid.
The multinational team included representatives from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
"Other agencies from Canada - they did a terrific job with us as well as the Americans," UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said.
The foreign secretary said civilians had been involved in the operation "in the background".
Announcing the hostage release in London, Mr Straw said: "Mercifully no shots were fired."
This was clearly a major success for the British-led force, says the BBC's defence correspondent Rob Watson.
No, what it was a major success at capturing and interrogating terrorists that lead to this successful rescue.
And as far as "pooh-poohing" their efforts, I was not. I'm pooh-poohing this BBC news story. Particularly the fact that none of this would have been possible if those criminal Americans had not gotten terrorists that it captured to talk which no doubt the BBC feels was criminal of us to do.
They informed the terrorist that if he didn't talk, they would turn him over to Jack Bauer.
One of the suspects had the information which led officials to the Baghdad house where the hostages were four months into their ordeal.
They must have used Rosie O'Donnell's panties to extract the information.
"The rest with all their back slapping did nothing short of walk in to a building with no hostiles to untie the victims..."
That, DB, looks a lot like pooh-poohing to me. Shame on you.
Not.
I heard her too. She was a loon.
I was waiting for her to ask her people to go back into captivity to really throw it in Bush's face!
True. And I wouldn't put it past the loons to never let the words of the actual hostages get out. I mean, if the hostages are expressing thanks and have had a meaningful change of heart how would that reflect on this group? There is no way they are going to let any news like that out. That is why I said I would reserve my judgement for the actual hostages until I hear from their own mouths that they still hate the military and aren't a bit thankful for being rescued. Somehow I doubt that is the case. But I will wait until I hear it from them.
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