U.S. Hostage Begs for Life On Videotape
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
BAGHDAD, Iraq – An American kidnapped in November pleaded for his life in a video aired yesterday, and at least a dozen Iraqis died in Baghdad as political violence continued to plague the country five days before Sunday’s crucial elections for a new National Assembly.
On a day the American military announced that six American soldiers died, Iraqi police engaged in fierce shootouts with insurgents, including gunmen who were handing out leaflets warning Iraqis not to vote or risk seeing their families’ blood “wash the streets of Baghdad.”
In the hostage video, a bearded Roy Hallums, 56, speaking with a rifle pointed at his head, said he had been taken by a “resistance group” because “I have worked with American forces.” He appealed to Arab leaders, including Libya’s Moammar Gadhafi, to save his life.
Mr. Hallums was seized by gunmen November 1 along with Robert Tarongoy of the Philippines at their compound in Baghdad’s Mansour district. The two worked for a Saudi company that does catering for the Iraqi army. “I am please asking for help because my life is in danger because it’s been proved I worked for American forces,” Mr. Hallums said.
Separately, the U.S. military announced that a Bradley armored vehicle rolled into a canal northeast of Baghdad during a combat patrol Monday night, killing five American soldiers and injuring two from the Army’s 1st Infantry Division. The accident, which was under investigation, occurred near the town of Khan Bani Saad during a sandstorm, it said.
A sixth American soldier died Monday of wounds from a roadside bomb that blasted an American patrol in Baghdad, the military said. There has been speculation that the new Iraqi government might ask the Americans to set a timetable for foreign troops to leave. But Prime Minister Allawi said yesterday it was too soon to do that, saying Iraq must first build up its security forces to confront the insurgents.
Separately, a U.S. Marine helicopter crashed early today in western Iraq, the U.S. military said. There was no immediate word on casualties. The helicopter went down near the town Rutbah while conducting security operations.
