Iraq group threatens to kill South Korean hostage

[floda]

DUBAI (Reuters) - An Iraqi group has threatened to behead a South Korean hostage if Seoul does not end cooperation with U.S. occupying authorities, a videotape aired on Arabic television station Al Jazeera says.
"We ask you to withdraw your forces from our land and not to send any more troops, and if not we'll send you this Korean's head," one of a group of armed, masked men standing around the South Korean man said.

A banner in the background named the group as Jama'at al-Tawhid and Jihad, the name of the militant group led by al Qaeda operative in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The video showed the Korean, who Al Jazeera said named himself as Kim Song Il, shouting violently at the camera: "Please get out of here, here, here. I don't want to die."

more...

http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=532662&src=rss/uk/topNews§ion=news

[dArKeR]

1. Video Aired Of Korean Hostage - CBS

 Al-Jazeera television aired a video Sunday of a South Korean held hostage by militants begging for his life and pleading with his government to withdraw troops from Iraq.

The kidnappers, who identified themselves as belonging to a group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, gave South Korea 24 hours to meet its demand or "we will send you the head of this Korean."

The man was identified as Kim Soong Il.

"Please, get out of here," he screamed in English. "I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I know that your life is important, but my life is important."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/02/24/iraq/main541815.shtml

[Career Prole]

2. Story also on Al Jazeera

"Eel was first shown on his own, distraught and in tears, asking the South Korean government to rethink its troop deployment plans.
On Friday, South Korea, announced it would begin deploying 3000 troops to northern Iraq in early August to complement an already existing forces of more than 600, mostly comprised of engineers and medics.
"Please get out of here, here, here. I do not want to die; I do not want to die. I want to live. My life is important," he shouts.
The captors threatened to behead the captive if the South Korean government would not reconsider its deployment decision within 24 hours beginning Sunday evening."
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B5668807-4A58-46B4-B193-D0369E346EB3.htm


Here we go again... :(

[Kinkistyle]

4. Imagine its your son or your brother or your good friend

Crying out for his very life on TV while you sit there and know that he will have probably have his head sawed off with a knife because Bush wants the Koreans to send more troops to his failure of a corrupt war.

Imagine that horror.

Imagine how life could have been different for this poor man had an evil murderer not taken office in this country... :cry:



(edit to add: South Korea requires obligatory military service for all South Korean males.)

[NixMyDog]

10. Blame anybody other than the murdering terrorists

It just encourages them.

[Kinkistyle]

11. Iraq was Al-Qaeda-free before the U.S. invaded it.

Chew on that.

[Mike Daniels]

15. Chew on what?

The only people responsible for the death of the hostage are the people who slit his throat.

Not Bush, not Blair, nobody else period given that the kidnappers can easily choose not to kill if they so desire

But then I guess the concept of personal responsibility and free will doesn't count for much with you does it?

[Kinkistyle]

16. Of course I blame terrorists for the beheadings...

... But I blame Bush for creating the terrorists and there great new Home base/Recruiting center.

[theoceansnerves]

12. haha

hahahaha!

[0rganism]

3. kick to the top

Important topic, much duplicated.

[lucky777]

5. They're blaming al-Zarqawi again !!!

He really gets around considering that he is dead and missing a leg.

[0rganism]

6. He's a Legacy Scapegoat

al-Zarqawi, the gift that keeps on giving.

[Aidoneus]

7. the banner in the video itself blames him..

it reads Jama'at al-Tawhid wa`l-Jihad (roughly, "Organization for Unity and the Struggle"), which Fadel founded and leads (assuming he didn't die in Sulaymaniyah as the story goes). It is mistakenly identified with al-Qa'idat al-Jihad movement (Bin Laden group, or rathe the loose umbrella), by those who either don't know any better and don't care or quite deliberately spread pro-crusader propaganda.

[lucky777]

8. We'll start a 2-Minute Hate for him, like in 1984

He's like the guy with a hook for a hand -- terrorizing the kids at Lookout Point.

Until we get a clear fix on him and Bin Laden, we should stop blaming them for personal involvement in everything.

[Aidoneus]

9. No, those sessions are reserved for Ralph "Stealth Freeper" Nader

He's no Hamza. That guy I have actually seen and know is real.. I have yet to even see any video or audio of Fadel. He's a Bollywood creation for all I know, but the people with the AKs at least believe that there is such an organization as I named above.

They're not so much "being blamed", as much as just pointing out the very banner viewable in the video itself (though it would be overstating to say my ability to read Arabic was basic, I can pretty much make out the same and confirm that).. read closely, it also says it in the original.

You can see their seal in this picture here--


Of course, he is namedropped by crusader propagandists to ridiculous and desperate levels--that's what they do.

[FlemingsGhost]

13. What was he doing there in the first place?

"A South Korean television news station, YTN, identifies the hostage as Kim Sun-il, 33, an employee of a South Korean company called Gana General Trading - a supplier for the U.S. military. It said he was captured in the Fallujah area."

A supplier to the U.S. military? Fallujah?

Not a bright guy, folks

[chenGOD]

14. About an hour to the deadline.

It's on all the news channels here right now. I should really be sleeping, but damn, this is a crazy situation. I'm of two minds (of course), on the one hand, I wouldn't wish death upon anyone other than through natural causes. On the other hand, he was supplying the US military and contributing to the illegal invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq.

Watching the video was quite strange. He didn't sound like a Korean, but then again, I've never heard a Korean pleading for his life to be saved. I hope that there can be some sanity salvaged from this terrible situation, but knowing that the adults are in charge leaves me with nothing but doubt.

quick edit to add that as of now the South Korean govenment has not changed its plans to send troop to Iraq.

[RebelOne]

17. I really feel for this guy. Because we all know they are not going

to release him. We can expect another video and pixs of a gruesome beheading.

[dArKeR]

18. South Korean students lie down in a street in front of the ruling

Uri Party's offices in Gwangju, south of Seoul, yesterday during a rally opposing the government's decision to send troops to Iraq.
PHOTO: AP

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/photo/2004/06/22/2003138417

Why aren't American students protesting? WIMPS!