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[neptunes]

AGHDAD, Iraq - The Arab satellite TV network Al-Jazeera aired a videotape Sunday purportedly from al-Qaida linked militants showing a South Korean hostage begging for his life and pleading with his government to withdraw troops from Iraq (news - web sites).

The kidnappers, who identified themselves as belonging to a group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, gave South Korea (news - web sites) 24 hours to meet its demand or "we will send you the head of this Korean." But a South Korean official said Seoul would not change its position on sending troops to Iraq.

"Korean soldiers, please get out of here," the man screamed in English, flailing his arms. "I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I know that your life is important, but my life is important."

South Korean media identified the hostage as Kim Sun-il, 33, an employee of South Korea's Gana General Trading, Co., a supplier for the U.S. military.

The video came two days after news of the beheading of American hostage Paul Johnson by al-Qaida-linked militants in Saudi Arabia, and an announcement Friday by South Korea that it will send 3,000 soldiers to northern Iraq beginning in early August. Once the deployment is complete, South Korea will be the largest coalition partner in Iraq after the United States and Britain.

After showing the hostage's plea, the tape showed him kneeling in front of three masked men, two of them armed with Kalashnikovs. The man standing in the middle read a statement in Arabic.

"Our message to the South Korean government and the Korean people: We first demand you withdraw your forces from our lands and not send more of your forces to this land. Otherwise, we will send to you the head of this Korean, and we will follow it by the heads of your other soldiers."

The statement gave Seoul 24 hours from sunset Sunday to meet its demand.

But Deputy Foreign Minister Choi Young-jin said Monday there is no change in South Korea's plan to send troops to Iraq.

The group identified itself as Monotheism and Jihad; its purported leader, al-Zarqawi, is a Jordanian-born terrorist linked to al-Qaida. Al-Zarqawi's group claimed responsibility for the videotaped beheading last month of American businessman Nicholas Berg.

An Al-Jazeera staff member at the network headquarters in Qatar, Mohammed al-Saadi, told The Associated Press by telephone that the two-minute videotape was mailed to the Al-Jazeera bureau in Baghdad.

"Our office in Baghdad received an unknown package. They opened it and they found the tape," al-Saadi said.

A South Korean television news station, YTN, said Kim had been in Iraq for about eight months. His distraught sister, Kim Jung-sook, told the station that his family last spoke to him in April. At that time, she said, Kim Sun-il was in the Fallujah area and planned to leave the area in July.

On Saturday, Seoul warned its people not to travel to Iraq, saying its decision to send troops might prompt terror attacks on South Koreans. The warning came amid news of the beheading of Johnson, although it did not mention the incident.

"At this time, we cannot rule out the possibility of harm to our nationals, following the official announcement of the additional troop dispatch to Iraq," Foreign Ministry spokesman Shin Bong-kil said in a statement.

"The government urges the people to refrain from visiting Iraq," it said.

South Korea plans to send 900 troops to Kurdish-controlled Irbil in early August, followed by about 1,100 troops between late August and early September. An additional 1,000 soldiers will travel to Iraq later.


South Korea already has 600 military medics and engineers in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.

Seoul has portrayed the dispatch as a way of strengthening its alliance with the United States, thereby winning more support from Washington for a peaceful end to a long-running dispute over North Korea (news - web sites)'s nuclear weapons development.

Johnson, 49, an engineer who had worked in Saudi Arabia for more than a decade, was kidnapped last weekend by militants who followed through on a threat to kill him by Friday if the Saudi kingdom did not release its al-Qaida prisoners.

 

[neptunes]

don't visit iraq or saudi arabia for the next 3 years...

 

[Diablos]

I agree, this is getting crazy... my heart goes out to that guy and everyone else that falls victim to this. I feel so bad for them... you know they're done as soon as they are taken hostage. The terrorist's demands are way too unreealistic! And you know that they know that as well... assholes.

 

[Justin Bailey]

FUCKERS.

 

[dskillzhtown]

I think it went too far when the first innocent was kidnapped.

But the sad thing is the job market is so bad here, that there is a line of people waiting to go over there to work. Money>Life in their eyes.

 

[Deleted member 1235]

PUSSIES.

 

[Diablos]

Indeed... why would anyone want to work there, especially right now? Jeeesus.

 

[neptunes]

The south koreans are just aids in iraq.

helping both the us troops and iraqi civilians themselves.

 

[Stele]

What they are doing there is not the important thing; why they are there and who requested them to be there is. Honestly, I see South Korea withdrawing soon anyway. Most young SK are anti-American as it is, and their impeached president won the election on an anti-American platform -- this is all the excuse they need to withdraw and not look like they're forsaking Bush's request.

 

[cvxfreak]

I hope those three terrorists rot in hell. Fuck those bastards.

 

[neptunes]

I never saw the nick berg one but I heard it was in-humane and disgusting.

 

[SolidSnakex]

this is all the excuse they need to withdraw and not look like they're forsaking Bush's request.

Most countries should've started leaving when Saddam was caught.

 

[neptunes]

Most countries should've started leaving when Saddam was caught.

but could it affect trade and such?

 

[RiZ III]

Damn I feel like going and kicking some terrorist ass.

 

[M3Freak]

I'm not justifying their actions for killing innocent people, but what's the difference between this and western countries, espeically the U.S., supporting corrupt Middle East governments that have brutally ruled the citizenary for decades? What's the difference between this and the western world, most notably the U.S., over throwing democratically elected governments in the third world that do not want the U.S. "helping" them?

It's extremely logical what's happening. There's only so much a human can take before he or she decides it's time to fight back. The difference, of course, is those that can fight back without harming innocent people and only targetting those at fault.

In any case, the western world better give other countries and their peoples the chance to have worthy lives as well, otherwise what you see today will pale in comparison to tomorrow.

 

[neptunes]

korea has nothing to do with anything...

they're aiding both parties, iraq and us troops.

 

[SolidSnakex]

but could it affect trade and such?

Probably, but right now we're fighting to eliminate terrorist which is never going to happen. So sooner or later you're going to have to leave. Might as well get out before too many of the people you sent over there are killed.

 

[Kuroyume]

I don't get why these countries don't lie, give in, and they stay.

 

[Chrono]

I'm not justifying their actions for killing innocent people, but what's the difference between this and western countries, espeically the U.S., supporting corrupt Middle East governments that have brutally ruled the citizenary for decades? What's the difference between this and the western world, most notably the U.S., over throwing democratically elected governments in the third world that do not want the U.S. "helping" them?

It's extremely logical what's happening. There's only so much a human can take before he or she decides it's time to fight back. The difference, of course, is those that can fight back without harming innocent people and only targetting those at fault.

In any case, the western world better give other countries and their peoples the chance to have worthy lives as well, otherwise what you see today will pale in comparison to tomorrow.

First, these particular terrorist's agenda is a religous one. When they say "U.S. supprots corrupt regimes in the middle east" it means the U.S. supports regimes that are NOT like the Taliban which is what they want.

Second, the U.S. isn't sending out troops to shoot down those who oppose the governments. They do train intelligence officers and cops like many other countries that offer these services. The U.S. has relations with the middle eastern countries like Japan does, and every other country in the world. What the hell is this "suppport" your'e talking about?

Third, where's this struggle for freedom you're talking about? Your post suggested middle easterners are crying for freedom and america is suprresing them by supporting the regimes.. well I remember the protests in Iran.. but I don't remember any in egypt or syria.. You can't have a democracy and freedom via remote control.

Fourth, WHAT is this oppression you're talking about in the first place? the middle east isnt' that bad. The restricted freedom is mostly with the press and political views. Other then that people live their lives normally. In some countries they're pretty liberal, like lebanon and dubai, and others they're very religious like saudi arabia (because saudi society is very religous--not because america funds the sharia police).


Man.. I know you're trying to make this thing make sense to somehow regain your fai
th in humanity, but the reality is much harsher then you want it to be. Sorry.

i don't get why the hell some poeple try to "elevate" those terrorist to a better moral standing while the truth is that they're the worst scum history has ever seen. If they are powerful enough they'd nuke the entire non-muslim world whether they were "oppressed" or not.

 

[SolidSnakex]

I don't get why these countries don't lie, give in, and they stay.

Because when they find out that you lied they'll start killing them on the spot, no more deals to get them out alive.

 

[neptunes]

I don't get why these countries don't lie, give in, and they stay.

Then everyone would think think they could get something....

EDIT: and yeah, it'll just start "Jihad"

 

[Che]

I don't get why these countries don't lie, give in, and they stay.

Keyword: oil

 

[SKluck]

I don't get why these countries don't lie, give in, and they stay.

They won't "Start killing them on the spot" any more than they are now. Don't you think if they could, they would have captured 2, 4, 10 hostages?

If a country gave in, the terrorists would kill them anyway. Whatever they do, the hostage is dead. That is fact.

I don't get why the guy didn't say he wasn't North Korean, I doubt the terrorists knew exactly what he was doing, unless he was in a convoy or something, or saw his identification.

 

[neptunes]

the worst place to be is there!

 

[M3Freak]

Chrono:

1. What makes you the believe it's a religous fight ONLY for the people in the Middle East, that is Muslims?
2. I think religon is a factor, but not the main one: the main problem is that people have had it with living in shit for decades while people in western countries, especially the U.S., have lived in luxury by destroying the lives of people in the third world.
3. There are many problems in western countries (e.g. daily reports of corruption, politicians saying one thing, but doing something completely different). How long do you think the lower and middle classes will put up with that HERE before they decide that the only way to restore decency and honour to their lives is to fight back?
4. Humans have gone through this before. It's nothing new:
- powerful nation rises
- grows on the backs of the poor and citizens of other countries
- poor and citizens of other country's fight back
- great nation falls
- period of relative peance and return to honour for all
- cycle repeats itself because people become complacement, but most off all, forget everything that happened before.

 

[explodet]

I don't get why the guy didn't say he wasn't North Korean, I doubt the terrorists knew exactly what he was doing, unless he was in a convoy or something, or saw his identification.

North Korean? He might as well have tried to say he was from the planet Jupiter. You don't see many North Koreans anywhere except North Korea and some parts of China.

Besides, it's not like these people have "Axis of Evil" meetings.

 

[Takuan]

This is some bad shit. My cousin's working there, I hope these kidnaps are somehow put to a stop.

 

[Chrono]

Chrono:

1. What makes you the believe it's a religous fight ONLY for the people in the Middle East, that is Muslims?

Its' a fight for what, exactly? Brazilians? I doubt al-Qaeda gives a @$#% about non-Muslims. They're wahabies-- all non-Muslims should DIE. Why would they "fight" for whoever you think they're fighting?

2. I think religon is a factor, but not the main one: the main problem is that people have had it with living in shit for decades while people in western countries, especially the U.S., have lived in luxury by destroying the lives of people in the third world.

Oh PLEASE.


First: the MAJORITY of al-qaida is from Saudi Arabia. That's a rich country. I can tell you that most al-Qaeda members who have been caught in Kuwait, emirates, and other gulf countries are very well off. Never mind the rich people that fund them. Egyptian president once accused one of the richest people of Kuwait, who happens to be part of one of the biggest families (=power in Kuwait), of funding Islamist in Egypt.

Second: You seem to live in a different world then me. How are westerners rich by destroying the lives of people? Are they enslaving the 3rd world in hard labor? I guess the 1st world "allowed" South Korea and Japan to advance and joint the club too?

Also, you sound like a bitter and jealous person. No offense but only a sick fuck murders people of a richer country because he's poor. Never mind this happened in SAUDI ARABIA and IRAQ. Rich oil countries.

There are many problems in western countries (e.g. daily reports of corruption, politicians saying one thing, but doing something completely different). How long do you think the lower and middle classes will put up with that HERE before they decide that the only way to restore decency and honour to their lives is to fight back?

]

What the hell are you saying? Middle-class Americans will start to bomb malls that are frequented by rich people? They can restore their decency and honor by working their way out of a poor life. What decency they have with this kind of thinking you're showing?

It's pathetic seeing people with their own agenda like you hijack a worse cause like that of those terrorists and support them (and don't tell me you don’t its painfully obvious). It's very, very unfortunate that people like you wont' get to experience what those al-Qaeda members think you should as a non-Muslim.

 

[Belfast]

What they are doing there is not the important thing; why they are there and who requested them to be there is. Honestly, I see South Korea withdrawing soon anyway. Most young SK are anti-American as it is, and their impeached president won the election on an anti-American platform -- this is all the excuse they need to withdraw and not look like they're forsaking Bush's request.

But they sure do like our StarCraft!!!

edit: also, the terrorists must be monumentally retarded people. Well, OK, not really. But what I'm trying to say is that they continually kidnap/execute people who are pretty much in the region TO HELP. Not to help the US Army, specifically, but also to help the average citizen there. We've got people over there trying to rebuild power/water/etc. infrastructures and in general give aid to those who live there. Of course, they aren't retarded for doing this because they know these people are easy targets and THAT is what makes it despicable. They won't even attack those that are actually RESPONSIBLE for whatever they hate the West for doing to the middle east.

Freedom fight all you want, terrorists, but brutally and purposefully attacking and executing innocents like this will eventually come back to bite you in the ass.

 

[neptunes]

This is some bad shit. My cousin's working there, I hope these kidnaps are somehow put to a stop.

you'd better hoper...err pray that your cousin gets a safe arrival home.

This will continue happening long after election time.

But they sure do like our StarCraft!!!

lol

 

[M3Freak]

Chrono:

You've missed my point entirely and have utterly mangled what you think I'm saying. Case in point: you believe I don't live in a Western country. Well, I was born on the shores of Lake Ontario, in beautiful Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I am Canadian through and through.

Perhaps a reason for why I see things the way I do is because Canadian's on the whole are much more wordly and in tune with their fellow human beings than the average American is. Something has to give in a country (just to clarify, I'm talking about the U.S. here) where the almighty individual reigns supreme: damn everyone else, right?

I know when to stop talking to people who cannot reason. And that's right about.........now.

 

[Lil' Dice]

S. Korea is about to send 3000 troops to Iraq, that's why he was kidnapped.....

 

[Particle Physicist]

Chrono:

1. What makes you the believe it's a religous fight ONLY for the people in the Middle East, that is Muslims?

are you trying to say that these terrorist are fighting for jewish and christian arabs?

Perhaps a reason for why I see things the way I do is because Canadian's on the whole are much more wordly and in tune with their fellow human beings than the average American is.

you have any proof to that, or are you just falling back on stereotypes?

 

[Ripclawe]

1. What makes you the believe it's a religous fight ONLY for the people in the Middle East, that is Muslims?
2. I think religon is a factor, but not the main one: the main problem is that people have had it with living in shit for decades while people in western countries, especially the U.S., have lived in luxury by destroying the lives of people in the third world.

Not just the middle east, beheading is not something new to islamic terrorists, Thailand is having to deal with them as well.


http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/BKK30710.htm

The beheading of a Buddhist rubber tapper last month and the murder of a Buddhist teacher this week has raised fears of sectarian unrest in the region that is home to most of predominantly Buddhist Thailand's six million Muslims.

 

[samus4ever]

please, can we quit the political talk and focus on that a innocent person is going to get killed. Its not any countries fault that this man is kidnapped.

 

[Guileless]

I'm not justifying their actions for killing innocent people, but what's the difference between this and western countries, espeically the U.S., supporting corrupt Middle East governments that have brutally ruled the citizenary for decades?

What do you want the US to do, invade those countries and force a regime change? Wait....

 

[shoplifter]

DEAR _____

REMOVE ALL TROOPS FROM _______ OR WE WILL SEND THIS PERSON'S HEAD TO _______ IN A BOX.

SINCERELY
THE TERRISTS

 

[Diablos]

Stop the bickering. I don't care what your reasoning is, these acts are sick. Have you seen the Nick Berg video? I hope each and every one of those cunts that stood behind him die in the longest, most painful way possible. I don't give a fuck how shitty their country and lives may be because of poverty and being 'mistreated' by my government. Fuck them and fuck everything they stand for. I will listen to the other side's view as long as it is civil. However, that video shows me that these people cannot act like human beings. I disagree a lot with how our foreign policy works, yes, and I realize it has obviously fueled their hatred against us, as those videos demonstrate. But still, people like this South Korean man, Nick Berg and who even knows how many others do not deserve to die like that. Shit, all the South Korean guy did was supply weapons to the military. What a bunch of pussies, they can't even take on the people that are attacking them directly. They have to do some lame shit like take the weapons supplier hostage. Again - pussies.

Sorry, I'm just pissed, and there's no way you can say we did the same thing.

M3Freak: Why don't you post a link to a video that has a bunch of US soldiers decapitating an innocent civilian for some stupid lost cause, if we did close to the exact same thing? I want to see it.

 

[Particle Physicist]

M3Freak: Why don't you post a link to a video that has a bunch of US soldiers decapitating an innocent civilian for some stupid lost cause, if we did close to the exact same thing? I want to see it.

dont bother trying to argue with him.. he's Canadian, he's above your train of thought.

Silly American.

 

[i heart sluts]

I highly suggest those terrorists not mess with South Korean Army soldiers.. their special forces and Marines apparently are incredibly badass and ruthless. In Vietnam they were the ones that started the whole practice of collecting ears from dead VC foes.

 

[Doth Togo]

Desert Ninja ownage.

 

[Diablos]

dont bother trying to argue with him.. he's Canadian, he's above your train of thought.

Silly American.

He makes some good points but he's being a real dick about it, that's for sure.

 

[Particle Physicist]

He makes some good points but he's being a real dick about it, that's for sure.

ya .. thats my main problem with his posts.

i heart sluts

who is that in your avatar ? ?

 

[firex]

If a Korean player on bnet can take a single hero in Warcraft 3 and defeat an entire army, I'm pretty sure this guy can kick all of their asses and escape before they can fight back.

 

[Diablos]

Hmm... not to be all anti-government, but what do you guys think about this theory?

http://www.brushtail.com.au/nick_berg_hypothesis.html

The video was kind of sloppy...

 

[mint]

Dang as a korean myself..I hope they release him..

LOL at the war3 post, there are crazy players seriously. Like one replay, the player scattered wisps all over the map just to slow the hero down when hes trying to escape.

 

[GuntherBait]

- Rescue the guy
- Get our guys out of there
- Send 70-80 B-52 bombers with 4-5 Nukes in payload
- Blow the fucking middle east off the god damn planet
- Suffer nuclear winter in that part of the land for 15-20 years.
- 2042, the 100th year aniversary of WWII, WWIII will start.
~fin

 

[FightyF]

I'm not justifying their actions for killing innocent people, but what's the difference between this and western countries, espeically the U.S., supporting corrupt Middle East governments that have brutally ruled the citizenary for decades?

Here's the difference. The US Government/Army doesn't make it a public-style execution. Plus, what the US does affects more lives than just one. An economic santion could mean devestating entire communities, rather than the death of one person. Plus, you don't see the deaths, and though dying from hunger and disease is gruesome, it's not as shocking.

Like Diablos said, the difference is the fact that there is video evidence of this. If Americans saw videos of the Egyptian government torturing, raping, and murdering Egyptian people, they'd think twice about sending billions of dollars of economic aid to the country.

There's a simple temporary solution to these kidnappings, and it's to protect these foreigners with ample security as they are going around their business. They should live in fortified shelters (protected by the American Army) and be escorted to work and back.

I bring up this solution because we know these ridiculous requests will be ignored and these kidnappings will continue and get more outrageous as demand after demand become ignored.

 

[GuntherBait]

Here's the difference. The US Government/Army doesn't make it a public-style execution. Plus, what the US does affects more lives than just one. An economic santion could mean devestating entire communities, rather than the death of one person. Plus, you don't see the deaths, and though dying from hunger and disease is gruesome, it's not as shocking.

Like Diablos said, the difference is the fact that there is video evidence of this. If Americans saw videos of the Egyptian government torturing, raping, and murdering Egyptian people, they'd think twice about sending billions of dollars of economic aid to the country.

There's a simple temporary solution to these hijackings, and it's to protect these foreigners with ample security as they are going around their business. They should live in fortified shelters (protected by the American Army) and be escorted to work and back.

I bring up this solution because we know these ridiculous requests will be ignored and these kidnappings will continue and get more outrageous as demand after demand become ignored.

Demands like??

"I DEMAND THAT YOU UNPLUG THE INTERNET!"

 

[FightyF]

GuntherBait
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