U.S. confirms (missing) soldier married an Iraqi

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Nov. 2, 2006, 7:22AM
U.S. confirms soldier married an Iraqi


© 2006 The Associated Press

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BAGHDAD, Iraq — The U.S. military confirmed Thursday that a kidnapped soldier was an Iraq-American man who was married to an Iraqi woman.

Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell identified him as Ahmed Qusai al-Taayie, a 41-year-old reserve soldier.

The military spokesman said there was "an ongoing dialogue" in a bid to win the soldier's release, but he would not say with whom or at what level.

Al-Taayie was visiting his Iraqi wife when he was handcuffed and taken away by gunmen during a visit to the woman's family, Caldwell said.

The soldier's name had been widely published after a woman claiming to be his mother-in-law told the story of the interpreter's secret marriage three months ago and his abduction on Oct. 23.

Caldwell, however, said that the soldier and his wife were married before he was deployed to Baghdad in February 2005 and that his wife had come to Baghdad from abroad to visit family when the soldier visited and was kidnapped.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/4305265.html