Al Jazeera has enough chutzpah to call the men who executed 15 civilians 'fighters'. Unfortunately I don't have enough chutzpah to call al Jazeera a news organization. Instead, I'll settle for propaganda arm of murdering terrorists.

Cindy Sheehan's freedom fighters at it again.......

Al Jazeera:

Fighters have executed 15 Iraqis after ambushing their vehicle on a road north of the city of Falluja, police said.

The armed men ordered the passengers out of the vehicle and lined them up before shooting them in daylight on Sunday afternoon, police on Monday quoted witnesses as saying.

They did not specify whether the victims were civilians or off-duty security personnel but said they were believed to be from the neighbouring town of Saqlawiyah, in the Sunni Triangle.

Pools of blood covered the scene of the attack on the desert road, next to empty cases of pistol and AK-47 machine gun bullets, suggesting that the victims were shot from close range, an AFP correspondent reported.

The road was blocked for nearly 10 hours until tribesmen from the neighbouring Sunni town of Ramadi removed the bodies, police added.

Linked at OTB

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It's not that I'm against doctors treating wounded terrorists--not to do so would be a violation of their oath--it's just that after you treat the wounded terrorist you're supposed to turn them in. You will recall our extensive coverage on the two Italians who worked for A Bridge to Baghdad held hostage in Iraq. At least three groups had claimed to have been involved in the kidnapping of Simona Pari and Simona Torretta, one of which had threatened to behead the pair.

AP

Italy's Red Cross treated four Iraqi insurgents and hid them from U.S. forces in exchange for the freedom of two Italian aid workers kidnapped last year in Baghdad, an official said in an interview published Thursday.

Maurizio Scelli, the outgoing chief of the Italian Red Cross, told La Stampa newspaper that he kept the deal secret from U.S. officials, complying with "a nonnegotiable condition" imposed by Iraqi mediators who helped him secure the release of Simona Pari and Simona Torretta, who were abducted on Sept. 7 and freed Sept. 28.

"The mediators asked us to save the lives of four alleged terrorists wanted by the Americans who were wounded in combat," Scelli was quoted as saying. "We hid them and brought them to Red Cross doctors, who operated on them."

They took the wounded insurgents to a Baghdad hospital in a jeep and in an ambulance, smuggling them through two U.S. checkpoints by hiding them under blankets and boxes of medicine, Scelli reportedly said.

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(Gaza City) Here's a followup to previous reports (here and here) regarding the kidnapping of French television journalist Muhammed Ouathi.

From the Khaleej Times:

A French television journalist abducted by Palestinian gunmen in Gaza a week ago was freed unharmed on Monday, witnesses said.

The kidnapping of Mohammad Ouathi, a soundman for France 3 television, was the longest in a series of abductions of foreign journalists and aid workers in Gaza. No group claimed responsibility. Ouathi is a Frenchman of Algerian origin.

His release was announced by the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), an umbrella group of Palestinian militants that said it helped mediate an end to the abduction.

Interestingly, the PRC, which is dominated by Fatah gunmen, claimed it helped free Ouathi. It's believed by others that the PRC was directly responsible for the kidnapping.

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As hostage taking becomes more and more unpopular as a propaganda tool, news of hostages being released in Iraq becomes more frequent. I hadn't heard that these Pakistanis had been taken hostage last week, but I am glad to hear that they have been freed. Other news reports indicate that the three Egyptians and two Indians, kidnapped with the Pakistanis, have also been freed. more...

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The Taliban are alive, well, and in the business of taking hostages. They freed the Lebanese hostage when his company agreed to leave Afghanistan, thus pulling needed capital from an already impoverished nation. more...

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A 32-year-old Iraqi-Canadian citizen, Zaid Meerwali, kidnapped earlier this month and held for ransom has been murdured. MJ Pechar has the story here. Prime Minister Paul Martin has advised that all Canadian citizens should leave Iraq immediately. There is no Canadian embassy in Iraq.

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Carrie and Susan Hallums, the daughter and ex-wife of American hostage Roy Hallums, will be on CNN's Inside Edition today. Susan asks that we please remember Roy Hallums and the other American hostages in Iraq in your prayers.

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(Gaza City) A French television sound engineer was kidnapped by three gunmen outside his hotel in Gaza City and bundled into a waiting car just hours before Israel commenced its withdrawal of Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip. The technician works for French 3 Public Television.

In another report, TurkishWeekly.net:

Palestinian security forces have said they are investigating reports that a member of a French television crew was kidnapped by gunmen outside his Gaza City hotel.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

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Good news. A previously unidentified hostage in Iraq has been released. His name is Victor Tawfiq Girgis, and he is a Christian Copt from Egypt. The terrorists behind these acts seem to have found that their audience does not approve of the murder of hostages. Notice in the story, reprinted below, that our allies the Egyptians say he was delivering supplies to the US Army of occupation. Who needs enemies with friends like these? more...

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Mustafa Abdul-Rassul Hussein was kidnapped Friday. Apparently, his kidnappers are after money. This reminded me that several Americans are still being held hostage in Iraq. Keep them in your prayers.

They are:
Roy Hallums Nov 1 2004
Radim Sadiq (aka, Dean Sadik) Nov 2 2004
Jeffrey Ake April 11 2005
Tim Bell April 9 2004 more...

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