Free Republic

CAIRO (AP) — New video aired Saturday purportedly shows a San Francisco man being depacitated moments after he urges the United States to end its occupation of Iraq. The man on the tape identified himself as what sounds like Benjamin Vanderford, from San Francisco. He sat on a chair in a dark room, his hands behind his back, trembling and rocking back and forth. There was no way to immediately determine the authenticity of the tape and the U.S. military in Iraq and the U.S. Embassy said they were unaware of the video and had no immediate comment. There was...

Militants loyal to top al-Qaeda suspect Abu Musab al-Zarqawi have released a video which apparently shows a US citizen being beheaded. The man says he is from San Francisco, Reuters news agency says. It is unclear if and when he was taken hostage. Zarqawi militants have previously released footage of at least three hostages being decapitated. They include a US businessman, a South Korean translator and a third man said to be a Bulgarian lorry driver.

A video purporting to show an American being beheaded in Iraq has been posted on a militant Islamic website.      The hostage said he was from San Francisco and urged American troops to leave Iraq, it is reported.The al Qaeda-linked group led by the Jordanian Abu Musab al Zarqawi claimed responsibility for the killing.    The man named himself as Benjamin Ford on the video.   "My name is Benjamin Ford. I am from San Francisco, California," he says, dressed in a plain beige T-shirt as he sat on a chair.   "We need to leave this country right now. If we don't, everyone is gonna be killed...