Iraq Militant Group Takes 6 New Hostages

[Rose Siding]

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A militant group said Wednesday it had taken six more hostages -- three Indians, two Kenyans and an Egyptian -- and would behead them if their countries did not immediately announce their intention to withdraw their citizens from Iraq.

In a statement given to The Associated Press, the group, calling itself "The Holders of the Black Banners," said it had abducted the six truckers and would behead one of them every 72 hours if their nations did not pull out of Iraq and the company they work for did not close its branch here. The deadline starts from 8 p.m. (noon EDT) Wednesday, it said.

"We have warned all the countries, companies, businessmen and truck drivers that those who deal with American cowboy occupiers will be targeted by the fires of the Mujahedeen," the statement said. "Here you are once again transporting, goods, weapons and military equipment that backs the U.S. Army."
snip>

In photos provided to AP with the statement, six of the hostages are shown standing behind three seated, masked gunmen. One of the hostages holds a paper with the typed names of seven men -- presumably six of them were the hostages -- their nationalities, passport numbers and the registration numbers of the trucks they were driving. The paper is stamped July 20 and the words "Universal Services" were handwritten on top.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-iraq-hostages,0,3066932.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

[maddezmom]

1. this nightmare is never going to end

:(

[Az_lefty]

2. No it's not, they've found out kidnapping pays off

[omshanti]

3. kick - Reuters story

edited to add a yahoo link to Reuters story.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&e=1&u=/nm/20040721/ts_nm/security_iraq_hostages_dc

any link on CNN website yet?

[maddezmom]

4. CNN's been reporting on it

not sure of anyone else :shrug:

[markses]

6. Because they were going to stop the kidnappings if nobody responded?

I never will understand this argument. Kidnappings will pay off either way. If the countries or companies comply with demands, that's a big PR victory. If they don't comply and the hostages are murdered, that's a smaller but material victory, because they put the deterrent out there: You come do business here, we'll cut your fucking head off. The same people who think the death penalty serves as a deterrent here seem to think that this has no effect there. Let me ask you this: How much would they have to pay YOU to drive a truck on Highway 8 from Baghdad to Najaf, say, three times a week? The more painful these guys make that, the more they tweak the market, the more they succeed in making Iraq unlivable for any company or operation in league with the US. Is this an ethical strategy? Hell no. Is it an effective pragmatic strategy? Of course it is. Of course it is.

This is like the Rob Lowe moment in the special West Wing episode after 9/11, where he argues to a group of kids that terrorism has never worked. Bull-fucking-shit. These tactics work. If they weren't out doing this, it would be much easier to do business in Iraq. But they are out there doing it, and it fucking works.

[One_Life_To_Give]

10. Possibly

If I follow your argument then these people would have been killed anyway. And that may well be the case. However it is also possible they were targeted solely to compel actions by another party (their government)

Under your assumptions I see no difference if the government agrees to the demands or not. But if it is otherwise then agreeing t the demands of the hostage takers only guarantees more misery.

[markses]

12. Correct: It is a double bind

If you deal, they win.
If you don't deal, they win.

Proviso: These are not general characteristics of terrorist actions, but particular characteristics of the kidnappings and murders in Iraq.

Of course, intelligent people attempt to avoid no-win situations such as this one. And hopeful people like to pretend that the situation is not "no-win," but can be won, for example, by refusing to deal. Hope is nice, however much it clouds analysis.

As it stands, the situation is completely controlled by these hostage takers and murderers. Nobody has managed to come up with a universal solutoion for this double-bind. the Philipines, however, came up with a particular solution to save the life of one of their own citizens. Is this a short-term solution that ulitmately does more harm than good? Perhaps. But it would not have mattered either way. This is like a checkmate, really: move left, yer fucked. Move right, yer fucked. Guess what?

You're fucked.

[daleo]

11. Very well said

It does seem that, either way, the kidnappings and killings tend to produce a desired effect for the resistance. As long as the invasion and occupation is seen as the greater evil (and the source of all the subsequent evils, such as this) by the bulk of the Iraqi population, the kidnappings will probably continue. The resistance is effective, regardless of the specific tactics being employed, because the occupation and its puppet government lacks legitimacy. I can't see how it can ever gain legitimacy, either.

[hightime]

5. Nice to see complying with kidnappers demands doesn't lead to more kidnaps

Reminds me of the movie Ransom......both of them.

[Snazzy]

7. 900 dead

Updated Yahoo link includes this:

The U.S. death toll as counted by The Associated Press reached 900 with the report by Maj. Neal O'Brien of the 1st Infantry Division, who said the bomb killed the American soldier shortly after midnight during a patrol in a Bradley fighting vehicle in Duluiyah, 45 miles north of Baghdad.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=535&e=1&u=/ap/20040721/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

[One_Life_To_Give]

8. Thank You Philippines n/t

[truth2power]

9. Please see post #6.

I think Markses is right on this. Who was it said "Terrorism is war by other means," or something like that.

No one in the world can win against the US militarily. Since Bush and the neocons have decided that they are going to make over the entire world in the image of the US, we are going to see more and more of these kinds of actions -- people fighting to take their country back from US occupation in the only way available to them.