Iraq Militants Claim Marine Beheading

[DC09]

BAGHDAD, Iraq - An Iraqi militant group claimed on a Web site Saturday it beheaded a captive U.S. Marine, in what would be the fourth decapitation of a foreign hostage in the region since May.

The group, called the Ansar al-Sunna Army, posted a written statement on an Islamic Web site claiming that it had killed Lebanese-born Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, saying he had been lured into a trap involving a love affair with an Arab woman.

Also Saturday, insurgents set off a roadside bomb at an Iraqi checkpoint, killing seven national guardsmen in the deadliest attack on Iraqi troops since the U.S. occupation authorities transferred power to a new Iraqi government five days ago.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said his country was in "a race against time" in dealing with insurgents. He said Iraqi troops "are not ready" to deal with the challenges alone.

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Militants? Terrorists.

[GemStar]

america could feed millions if they stop causing stupid and pointless wars why dont they sort there country before wading in on others, this post was made after seeing a banner on this site

Edited July 4, 2004 by GemStar

[Babs]

I read on CNN the marine is alive and returning. He had to promise to quit the military.

[DC09]

Brother Says Missing Marine in Iraq Freed

BEIRUT, Lebanon - The family of a Lebanese-born U.S. Marine held hostage in Iraq said it was confident Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun had been freed and was well, though relatives have not heard directly from him, his brother said Tuesday.

"We have received reliable information the guy is free," Sami Hassoun told The Associated Press from the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, where the Marine has family.

Though he had not spoken with his brother, who was serving as a translator with the U.S. Marines in Iraq when he went missing June 20, Sami Hassoun said "we received a sign from my brother reassuring us."

He would not say what was the sign, but said the family received information deemed credible from a person he did not identify who came to their Tripoli home. That person, he said, did not disclose the whereabouts of the Marine to the family.

Lebanese Foreign Ministry officials said in Beirut that its embassy in Baghdad said Hassoun was still alive. They gave no further details.

Hassoun's alleged captors have claimed he was romantically involved with an Arab woman and was lured away from his Marine base and captured.

Hassoun's family in Tripoli and in Utah have had their hopes dashed and raised with conflicting information about the Marine's fate coming from his purported captors and Lebanese officials.

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