by Natasha Tynes | Jan 26, 2006 | Jill Carroll
Well, the hottest news of the day, aside from Hamas major victory in the Palestinian elections, is the fact that the US has released five female detainees in Iraq. Here is an excerpt from a Reuters article:
The five, among at least eight women held by U.S. forces in Iraq, were freed along with 414 other detainees, a U.S. military spokesman said. "The case of the women detainees is a legal case and it has nothing to do with the case of the American journalist," said a Justice Ministry official, who declined to be named.
The news of their anticipated release has been circulating for over a week now, and was denied on a number of occasions. But it has finally happened. Whether this is related to Jill’s abduction or not, this is good news, as it might help secure her release. The demands of the kidnappers have largely been met, whether directly or indirectly. They should set Jill free now!
UPDATE: Jill’s release may be imminent, at least according to one Iraqi source quoted in this breaking report from the AP:
A top Iraqi police officer says he thinks kidnapped American reporter Jill Carroll will be freed. And he says today’s release of five Iraqi women from U.S. custody could help. U.S. officials have said the release had nothing to do with the demands by Carroll’s kidnappers that the U.S. release Iraqi women.
This is fantastic news, although at this point we are dealing with the speculation of an unnamed source from a newly identified source, Maj. Gen. Hussein Ali Kamal, the Iraqi interior ministry’s head of intelligence. The U.S. position on this cannot and likely will never change. But the reality this event is creating on the ground could be having a direct impact on Jill’s release. Let’s hope this guy Kamal is right when he says: "Any announcement may not benefit the case because of its sensitivity, but we can say, God willing, that she [Jill] will be released." Word is, this guy said nearly the exact same words several days previous, so we have to take his hopeful thought with a grain of salt, difficult as that may be.
But in a wonderful moment of humanity, Siham Faraj, the mother of Hala Khalid (who was arrested with her brother in late September ’05 during a raid by U.S. forces on their home) said she was anxious to see her daughter and hoped it would mean Jill’s release:
"We are happy and we thank God for this blessing," Faraj told The Associated Press. "I call upon the kidnappers of the American reporter to release her because she is as innocent as Hala … I wish the Americans would stop random arrests. We only want peace in this country."
UPDATE 2: The Christian Science Monitor ran a further, fuller quote from Mrs. Faraj about Jill on Thursday:
"[Jill will] be fine and she will come out very soon because she loves Iraq and she loves Iraqis, so God will never forget her," says Siham Faraj, the mother of Hala Khalid Wahid who was detained by US forces in Iraq four months ago. But she added, "I don’t think Jill Carroll’s situation has anything to do with the release of my daughter, but we definitely feel her pain …
"And to her mother, I say: I know how painful it is when a daughter is detained. But don’t worry, madam. Your daughter is a great woman and she will be fine."
by Natasha Tynes | Jan 25, 2006 | Jill Carroll
According to Al-Ghad daily (in Arabic), a number of Jordanian women’s organizations have condemned the kidnapping of Jill and asked for her release. Among those calling for her release is Dima Tahboub, the wife of my late colleague Tareq Ayyoub who was killed in Iraq in 2003 when he was struck by a US missile in the early days of the war. "Kidnapping journalists hurts the message of humane resistance and makes its message criminal," Dima Tahboub told Alghad.
Both Jill, the late Taerq Ayyoub, and myself were working at The Jordan Times when the Iraq war began. When Tareq was killed, every one at The Jordan Times was shattered. We could not believe that we had lost Tareq forever. I clearly remember Jill’s reaction the day we heard the news of Tareq’s tragic death. She was traumatized by the loss of her colleague in a war that was being waged right next door. She did not say much that day. She was at loss for words.
Three years later Jill finds herself in another terrible ordeal in Iraq. Her life is threatened merely for doing her job as a reporter. Both Tareq and Jill worked for The Jordan Times. Both went to Iraq in pursuit of what they saw as the truth. And both suffered a great deal for seeking their passion and believing in what they did.
To Dima Tahboub, I say, again, I’m so sorry for your loss. Tareq is always in our minds. To Jill, I say, hang in there habeebti. We are all here praying for you, fully supporting your choice to report in Iraq.
by Natasha Tynes | Jan 25, 2006 | Jill Carroll, Media watch
Although we have not heard any major news regarding Jill, the following news items eked out today, making me feel even more hopeful:
The Iraqi authorities have arrested three people in Baghdad suspected of being involved in the kidnapping of American freelance journalist Jill Carroll. An interior ministry statement said the arrests were made during a raid by the security forces in the Adel neighborhood where Carroll was seized.
Source: [AKI]
The second bit of promising news came from Reuters, renewing a suggestion that female Iraqi prisoners will be freed:
Five Iraqi women prisoners whose release has become linked to the case of kidnapped American journalist Jill Carroll will be freed from U.S. custody on Thursday, a Justice Ministry official said on Wednesday. Iraqi officials have been at odds with their U.S. counterparts over the release of the five, among eight women terrorism suspects in American custody in Iraq.
Source: [Reuters]
Whether the release of these female detainees is related to Jill’s abduction or not, this means that the kidnappers demands have largely been met, directly or indirectly. My hope remains strong. Perhaps we will hear good news soon!
UPDATE: The Christian Science Monitor is now reporting that a US military spokesman in Baghdad has confirmed statements made Wednesday by Iraqi justice ministry officials that said five women detainees are scheduled to be released on Thursday.
by Natasha Tynes | Jan 25, 2006 | Jordan, my nation, Media watch, Religion
Reporters Without Borders voiced concern today about the Jordanian parliament’s call yesterday for the punishment of the cartoonist that drew 12 caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed that appeared in the Danish daily Jyllands-Posten on 30 September and were reprinted in the Norwegian publication Magazinet on 10 January.
"Islam forbids any representation of the Prophet and we realize that these cartoons may upset some people, but it is not acceptable for the parliament of a supposedly democratic country to call for the cartoonists to be punished," the press freedom organization said.
"Those who so desire may bring a complaint against the newspaper, but politicians should under no circumstances should call for direct reprisals against journalists," Reporters Without Borders continued. "The cartoonists have already received death threats and these new statements put them in further danger."
In a statement yesterday, the Jordanian parliament said the cartoons "constitute a cowardly and reprehensible crime" and urged the Norwegian and Danish authorities "to express their condemnation and disapproval of this hateful crime and to punish the perpetrators and instigators."
Source: [RSF]
I fully understand how these cartoons enraged believers, as their sole purpose seems clearly bent on stirring controversy and ridiculing some people’s beliefs. It’s clear people feel strongly about this, and rightly so. Actions hailed by one group as an "act of free speech" are condemned by the other as blasphemy. However, for Jordan’s parliament, condemnation is one thing (and here the most prudent thing for a legislative body), but calling for outright punishment is — like the RSF said — "not acceptable for the parliament of a supposedly democratic country."
I hope parliamentarians are not seeking inspiration from Ayatollah Khomeini’s fatwa, which called for the killing of Suleiman Rushdie over his controversial book The Satanic Verses! Moving from a body that gives voice to the people’s concerns to a congress bent on holy revenge is a dangerous step in the wrong direction.
by Natasha Tynes | Jan 23, 2006 | Jill Carroll
First of all, Jill’s father has made a second appeal for Jill’s release this time appearing on CNN:
I wish to speak to the men holding my daughter. I hope that you heard the conviction in Jill’s voice when speaking of your country. That was real. She is not your enemy. When you release her alive, she will tell your story with the same conviction. Alive my daughter will not be silenced.
Yours is a story which can to be told to the world by Jill. Allowing her to live and releasing her will enable her to do so. As you know by now, my daughter is honest, sincere, and of good heart. Her respect for the Iraqi people has been shown through her words as a reporter. Jill started to tell your story, please, allow her to finish it. Through the media if necessary, advise her family and me how to initiate a dialogue which will lead to her release.
And of real note today, Montasser al-Zayat — head of the Liberties Committee and a former member of the Egyptian militant group Gamaa Islamiya (Islamic Group) — has appealed for Jill’s release. This is really good. Hopefully, his message will have an impact. It makes me feel really hopeful. Al-Zayat is an Islamic lawyer and author of the book The Road to Al-Qaeda. He has represented numerous Islamic militants in Egyptian courts and shared a prison cell with Ayman Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda’s number two man. Mr. al-Zayat sent the following message:
I followed with grave concern the kidnapping of the American journalist Jill Carroll on Saturday, January 7, west of Baghdad. I’m concerned to what extent are the resistance factions — who are kidnapping journalists and media workers — following the guidelines of religion. The resistance, which has the right to fight the occupation and target its symbols and spies, must also be sure of the facts on the ground.
I learned from media reports and from friends who knew the kidnapped reporter that she was well known for her sympathy towards the Iraqi people since the start of the terrible occupation. She observed the Arab and Islamic traditions, and dressed modestly out of respect to the Iraqi customs derived from Islam. Also her published reports show clearly her sympathetic approach towards the Iraqi cause.
If the reporter has been in the hands of the Iraqi resistance for nearly two weeks now, then this means she has been interrogated carefully, and the truth should have been revealed by now to the kidnappers. I’m asking the kidnappers to release her so that it would be a clear message to the whole world — a message of a just cause and the ability to achieve justice even under the most difficult circumstances, where the Iraqi people and the resistance movements are facing the tyranny of the occupier.
I’m sending my regards to the honorable resistance men, who are fighting the occupation, and I’m reminding everyone with our prisoners in the occupation prisons in Iraq and Palestine. May Allah help secure their release.
UPDATE: A top Hamas official, Sayeed Syam, has just asked for Jill’s release:
Hamas joins those who ask to release American citizen Jill Carroll. Hamas is against the kidnapping of innocent people, of foreigners who are guests in the Arab countries, and those who introduce humanitarians services and help for the Arab people — and for any people in general — especially when they are not interfering in internal Arab affairs. We have declared many times we are totally against kidnapping civilians.
Well, the hottest news of the day, aside from Hamas major victory in the Palestinian elections, is the fact that the US has released five female detainees in Iraq. Here is an excerpt from a Reuters article:
