The fate of the four aid workers abducted last week in Iraq remains unclear. No video or photos has emerged of the two Italians and two Iraqis who were taken in broad daylight from their Baghdad office last week. The two Italian women and the Iraqi man work for the Italian aid organization, a Bridge to Baghdad. The Iraqi woman works for another Italian aid organization. On Sunday, a second group claimed responsibility for the abduction and threatened to kill the 4 hostages if Italy did not withdraw its 3,500 troops from Iraq. The Italian government has said it will not pull its forces out and will not negotiate despite pleas from aid organizations and human rights groups for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s government to do so. The group that has taken responsibility calls itself the Islamic Jihad Organization in Iraq. A Bridge to Baghdad and dozens of other groups working in Iraq have signed a joint appeal to the kidnappers to release the 4 hostages, saying they are not enemies of Iraq and are opponents of the occupation.
Fate of Four Aid Workers Kidnapped in Iraq Remains Unclear
HeadlineSep 13, 2004