Tape Threatens Four Iraq Hostages
Al Jazeera Airs Video; Chopper Crash Details Emerge
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Play CBS Video Video Groups Vie For Copter Claim It appears to have been the first civilian copter shot down in Iraq in two years, and competing insurgent groups are broadcasting videos to claim responsibility, Lee Cowan reports.
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Video Romanian Hostage Video Al-Jazeera aired video purportedly showing three Romanians held hostage by militants in Iraq. The woman - said to be Marie Jeanne Ion - is seen talking but Al-Jazeera did not air the audio.
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This image made from insurgent video aired by Al-Jazeera appears to show three kidnapped Romanians, two men and a woman, sitting cross-legged against a black background with their hands chained. (AP Photo/Al-Jazeera)
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This image from video claims to show kidnapped Iraqi-American translator Mohammed Monaf, in Iraq, sitting alone with his hands bound. (AP Photo/Al-Jazeera)
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Aftermath of bomb blast outside Shiite mosque in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP /APTN)
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Ion, Ohanesian, Monaf and Prima TV cameraman Sorin Miscoci were kidnapped March 28. They appeared, surrounded by gunmen, in a video aired a day later on Al-Jazeera.
Ion's father, Vasile Ion, confirmed the woman on the latest tape is his daughter. "She looks awful in this moment. She has a strong personality but now it seems she lost the power to react normally," he told private Realitatea TV. "We hope authorities will resolve this in a good way and bring our children home."
Petre Mihai Bacanu, Romania Libera's managing director, identified Ohanesian in the video. "This problem is becoming very serious now. Only the Romanian authorities can hope to win the journalists their freedom," he told The Associated Press.
Romania's President Traian Basescu cut short a visit to neighboring Moldova and returned to meet with the crisis team which is handling the hostage situation. Romania has 800 troops in Iraq.
In Friday's video, a logo of a previously unknown group, the "Muadh ibn Jabal Brigades," appears in the corner. Miscoci appears upset, possibly crying.
Ion says in the video that their captors gave the Romanian government four days since the date of tape broadcasting to withdraw its forces from Iraq or they will be killed, according to the Al Jazeera anchor.
She also asked the Romanian people to demonstrate to pressure the government to implement the kidnappers' demands, the anchor said.
Monaf appealed to President Bush to intervene to help their release, the anchor said.
The four were kidnapped near their Baghdad hotel shortly after interviewing interim Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, according to Prima TV editors.
The video released March 29 did not have a claim of responsibility for their abduction. The name "Muadh bin Jabal" refers to a companion of Islam's prophet, Muhammad.
More than 200 foreigners have been kidnapped in Iraq since the beginning of 2004, and at least 17 are believed to still be in the hands of their captors — including the three Romanians and their translator. More than 30 others were killed by their kidnappers.
©MMV CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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