October 15, 2004
New York Post
BAGHDAD — A videotape that was posted yesterday on an Islamic Web site showed militants affiliated with wanted Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi beheading two Iraqis purported to be intelligence officers.
In other abductions, two Lebanese were freed after more than three weeks in captivity in Iraq, and a French politician said the government has restored indirect contact with kidnappers holding two French journalists hostage in Iraq since late August.
The 10-minute videotape showed two captives, Fadhel Ibrahim and Firas Imeil, identifying themselves as Iraqi National Intelligence officers and saying they were captured in Baghdad's Haifa Street on Sept. 28.
The tape showed four masked gunmen standing behind Ibrahim and then Imeil, with one militant describing the blindfolded captives as "criminals."
There was no way to immediately verify the authenticity of the tape, which was released in the name of the Brigades of Abu Bakr Al-Sidiq, a terror group affiliated to al-Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad organization.
Zarqawi's group has kidnapped and beheaded numerous foreigners — including three Americans.
Meanwhile, Iraq's interim prime minister warned the rebel-held city of Fallujah yesterday it must hand over foreign terrorists, including Zarqawi, or face a major operation to root them out.
Iyad Allawi's comments set a tough condition for negotiators seeking to defuse a months-long standoff between U.S. forces and their Sunni Muslim foes in Iraq's most rebellious city.
"If Zarqawi and his group are not handed over to us, we are ready for major operations in Fallujah," Allawi told Iraq's interim National Council. "I hope they [people in Fallujah] will respond. If they don't, we will have to use force." Post Wire Services
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