Free Republic

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Kidnappers of Egypt's top diplomat in Iraq threatened to kill him because Egypt has allied with "Jews and Christians," according to a statement posted today on an al-Qaida-linked Web site. Al-Qaida's religious court decided to hand over Ihab al-Sherif to its fighters "to carry out the punishment of apostasy against him," said the statement on the site associated with al-Qaida in Iraq. Under Islam, apostasy, or changing religion, is punishable by death. The statement was ominous because al-Qaida in Iraq, led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, has been responsible for beheading several foreign hostages, including American Nicholas Berg....

Egypt's ambassador to Iraq has been kidnapped in Baghdad, according to a source in the Egyptian embassy there. The source said Ihab al-Sherif was abducted near his home on Saturday. The Egyptian Embassy was sealed off by security forces. The ambassador had just arrived in Iraq in June and was the first to represent an Arab country in post-war Iraq. Al-Sherif had not yet formally presented his credentials to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales arrived in Baghdad Sunday on a surprise visit, officials at the U.S. Embassy confirmed. The officials said Gonzales would meet with...