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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Phillipines to pull troops out |
| 2004-07-10 |
| The Philippines will withdraw its peacekeeping contingent from Iraq on schedule next month, the government said Saturday, the day militants vowed to kill a Filipino hostage if the troops were not sent home. As the government made its announcement, the Arab television station Al-Jazeera showed a video of the hostage appealing to Manila to give in to the insurgents and withdraw its 51-member force. In a tape Wednesday, the militants threatened to behead the hostage if the government did not comply within three days. The government decision appeared to be deliberately ambiguous, representing the fine line Manila is walking to obtain hostage Angelo dela Cruz’s release while remaining one of Washington’s closest supporters of the global war on terrorism. The Filipino soldiers are participating in civic projects to help the 160,000-strong foreign force. Before the kidnapping, the government had discussed extending the peacekeepers’ mandate beyond its Aug. 20 expiration. But Saturday’s statement did not address the issue. A government official said on condition of anonymity that sending troops back to Iraq after August is "not a settled issue at the moment" and any new deployment "will be discussed all over again." Saturday’s announcement also did not mention any further action concerning the Filipino contract workers in Iraq. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo already barred any more contract workers from going to Iraq, but the statement did not mention any plans to have them return home. The approximately 4,000 Filipino workers on U.S. military bases across Iraq provide food services, janitorial work and building maintenance. The U.S. military, which has diverted as many soldiers to combat duty as possible, would be hard pressed to operate in Iraq without the extra manpower provided by the Filipinos. Earlier this year, three Filipino workers were killed in attacks by Iraqi insurgents. Dela Cruz, a 46-year-old father of eight from the town of Mexico in northern Pampanga province, was snatched near restive Fallujah in an attack that killed his Iraqi security guard. The video Wednesday showing him surrounded by armed, masked men. On Saturday, another video of dela Cruz was shown by Al-Jazeera. "Please, Arroyo, withdraw your forces from Iraq," dela Cruz pleaded on the new video. His voice was inaudible, but an announcer read an Arabic translation of his words. The Al-Jazeera announcer said the video was intended as the hostage’s last appeal to his family, government and friends. Dela Cruz reportedly worked as a truck driver for a Saudi company. "To my colleagues in the Saudi company, and all Filipinos who are coming to Iraq. I advise you not to come to Iraq, because there are a lot of problems, and the Iraqi police won’t be able to protect you, like what happened to me," he said, according to the announcer. Dela Cruz was alone on the video, wearing a bright orange jumpsuit like that worn by American hostage Nicholas Berg and South Korean hostage Kim Sun-il when they were beheaded by militants. Their killings were videotaped. Behind dela Cruz was a black banner that read: "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his only prophet," and identified the group that captured him as "The Islamic Army of Iraq — Khalid bin al-Waleed Brigade." |
| Posted by:Korora |
| #4 .com: The hostage appears to have been released. Filipino officials are making this claim. However, given the tendency of the Philippines government to overpromise and underdeliver, I would take that statement with a healthy dose of salt. Chances are that the hostage will be killed, and Filipino troops will withdraw, anyway. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2004-07-10 3:09:04 PM |
| #3 In the immortal words of the Monty Python minstrel: Brave Sir Robin ran away, Bravely ran away, away. When danger reared its ugly head, he bravely turned his tail and fled. Yes, brave Sir Robin turned about And gallantly, he chickened out. Bravely taking to his feet, He beat a very brave retreat, Bravest of the brave, Sir Robin. |
| Posted by: Korora 2004-07-10 1:58:06 PM |
| #2 Arroyo may have saved the Filipino, yet lost her honor. The hostage appears to have been released. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-07-10 11:28:21 AM |
| #1 Our friends are pussies. |
| Posted by: Destro 2004-07-10 11:18:24 AM |