May 11, 2004

Photo: This is a image made from a video posted Tuesday May 11, 2004 on an Islamic militant Web site affiliated with al-Qaida showing a group of five men wearing headscarves and black ski masks standing over a bound man in an orange jumpsuit, who identified himself as Nick Berg, a U.S contractor whose body was found on a highway overpass in Baghdad on Saturday. (AP Photo via APTN)

A 26-year-old American from Pennsylvania was beheaded to avenge the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers, and the militants who killed him videotaped the crime and posted it on a radical Islamic Web site.

Terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi may have either authorized the execution or actually performed the act himself, U.S. officials believe.

The video shows five men wearing headscarves and black ski masks standing behind a bound man in an orange jumpsuit similar to a prisoner's uniform. The prisoner identifies himself as Nick Berg, a U.S. contractor whose body was found on a highway overpass in Baghdad on Saturday.

"My name is Nick Berg, my father's name is Michael, my mother's name is Susan," the man says on the video. "I have a brother and sister, David and Sarah. I live in ... Philadelphia."

After the man in the center of the line of five — directly behind Berg — reads a statement, he can be seen pulling the prisoner to his side and putting a large knife to his neck. A scream sounds as the man cuts Berg's head off, while the group shouts "Allahu Akbar!" or "God is great." The executioner then holds the severed head out before the camera.

"To see this poor soul beheaded is gruesome and barbaric," former U.S. Navy Judge Advocate Gen. Tim Susanin told Fox News. "We're really seeing the difficulty our troops are dealing with. They've now been infiltrated by members of Al Qaeda."

Berg's family said Tuesday they knew their son had been decapitated, but didn't know the details of the killing. When told of the video by an Associated Press reporter, Berg's father, Michael, and his two siblings hugged and cried.

"I knew he was decapitated before. That manner is preferable to a long and torturous death. But I didn't want it to become public," Michael Berg said.

As President Bush boarded Air Force One headed back to Washington, D.C., Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters that the president's thoughts and prayers are with Nick Berg and with his family.

"This shows the true nature of the people who are opposed to freedom and democracy in the region," McClellan said. "Those who carried out this crime will be pursued and brought to justice."

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts issued the following statement about the beheading:

"Like all Americans, I'm horrified and deeply saddened by the senseless murder of Nicholas Berg. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and with the families of all our troops and civilians working under such dangerous conditions to rebuild and bring peace to Iraq. We are grateful for the work you do and the risks you take. The terrorists who committed this atrocity will not prevail, and America stands together against them."

And on Capitol Hill Tuesday, lawmakers reacted to the videotaped beheading with shock, outrage and disgust.

"It's terrible. It's tragic," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee. "These people have no regard for humanity."

"They're despicable in every way," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., also a member of the committee. "The challenge is to keep the fight going."

In the video, the executioner reads the following statement:

"For the mothers and wives of American soldiers, we tell you that we offered the U.S. administration to exchange this hostage with some of the detainees in Abu Ghraib and they refused.

"So we tell you that the dignity of the Muslim men and women in Abu Ghraib and others is not redeemed except by blood and souls. You will not receive anything from us but coffins after coffins ... slaughtered in this way."

The video bears the title "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi shown slaughtering an American." It is unclear whether al-Zarqawi — a lieutenant of Usama bin Laden — is shown in the video, or is claiming responsibility for ordering the execution.

The Web site on which the video was posted is that of Muntada Al-Ansar, known as a clearinghouse for Al Qaeda and Islamic extremist groups' statements and tapes. An audiotape purportedly from bin Laden — which the CIA said was probably authentic — appeared on the same Web site last week.

Western officials say al-Zarqawi, whose real name is Ahmad Fadhil al-Khalayleh, is a lieutenant of bin Laden. The United States has offered $10 million for information leading to the capture or killing of al-Zarqawi, saying he is trying to build a network of foreign militants in Iraq to work for Al Qaeda.

In the video, the speaker threatened both President Bush and Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf.

"As for you Bush ... expect severe days. You and your soldiers will regret the day you stepped into the land of Iraq," he said. He described Musharraf as "a traitor agent."

The slaying recalled the kidnapping and videotaped beheading of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002 in Pakistan. Four Islamic militants have been convicted of kidnapping Pearl, but seven other suspects — including those who allegedly slit his throat — remain at large.

Berg's mother, Suzanne Berg of West Chester, Pa., said her son was in Iraq as an independent businessman to help rebuild communication antennas. He had been missing since April 9, she said.

"He had this idea that he could help rebuild the infrastructure," she said.

The U.S. military Tuesday said an American civilian was found dead in Baghdad, but did not release his identity. State Department spokeswoman Susan Pittman said she couldn't release the name of the dead American, but said she not aware of more than one civilian found dead in recent days.

The military said there were signs of trauma to the body. Suzanne Berg said she was told her son's death was violent but did not want to discuss details.

Berg, who was in Baghdad from late December to Feb. 1, returned to Iraq in March. He didn't find any work and planned again to return home on March 30, but his daily communications home stopped on March 24. He later told his parents he was jailed by Iraqi officials at a checkpoint in Mosul.

"He was arrested and held without due process," his father, Michael Berg, told the Daily Local News of West Chester recently. "By the time he got out the whole area was inflamed with violence.

The FBI on March 31 interviewed Berg's parents in West Chester. Jerri Williams, a spokeswoman for the Philadelphia FBI office, told The Philadelphia Inquirer the agency had been "asked to interview the parents regarding Mr. Berg's purpose in Iraq."

On April 5, the Bergs filed suit in federal court in Philadelphia, contending that their son was being held illegally by the U.S. military. The next day Berg was released. He told his parents he hadn't been mistreated.

The Bergs last heard from their son April 9, when he said he would come home by way of Jordan, Turkey or Kuwait. But by then, hostilities in Iraq had escalated.

Suzanne Berg on Tuesday said she was told her son's body would be transported to Kuwait and then to Dover, Del. She said the family had been trying for weeks to learn where their son was but that federal officials had not been helpful.

"I went through this with them for weeks," she said. "I basically ended up doing most of the investigating myself."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,119615,00.html