al Qaeda-linked Web site shows beheading of American

[Epitome22]

Video on al Qaeda-linked Web site shows beheading

Victim identifies himself as American Nicholas Berg

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- An al Qaeda-linked Web site posted video Tuesday of a man who identified himself as an American and then was beheaded.

His captors said the United States refused to exchange him for prisoners in the Abu Ghraib prison.

"For the mothers and wives of American soldiers, we tell you that we offered the U.S. administration to exchange this hostage for some of the detainees in Abu Ghraib, and they refused," a hooded man standing behind the American says in Arabic.

"So we tell you that the dignity of the Muslim men and women in Abu Ghraib and others is not redeemed except by blood and souls. You will not receive anything from us but coffins after coffins, slaughtered in this way."

At the beginning of the tape, the victim describes himself as Nicholas Berg from Pennsylvania.

"My name is Nic Berg. My father's name is Michael. My mother's name is Suzanne. I have a brother and a sister -- David and Sarah," the man says.

"I live in West Chester, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia."

He is then shown sitting in front of five hooded men. After the statement is read by one of the men, the victim is pushed to the floor and, amid his screams, his throat is cut. One of the captors then holds up the man's severed head.

"This shows the true nature of the enemies of freedom," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters. "They have no regard for the lives of innocent men, women and children."

Berg's family told The Associated Press that they knew he had been decapitated but weren't aware of the details.

"I knew he was decapitated before," his father, Michael Berg, told the AP. "That manner is preferable to a long and torturous death. But I didn't want it to become public."

Suzanne Berg said her son was in Iraq as an independent businessman with a desire to help rebuild communication antennas.

"He had this idea that he could help rebuild the infrastructure," she told the AP.

Earlier in the day, the State Department identified the body of an American found Monday in Baghdad as that of Nicholas Berg of Pennsylvania.

Berg was not a soldier or a civilian employee of the Pentagon, the State Department said.

A senior State Department official also said that the decapitated body of an American had been found, but he could not confirm it was Berg.

The Web site said the killing had been carried out by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of an Islamist terrorist group that has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks on coalition forces in Iraq.

The voice on the tape could not be verified as that of al-Zarqawi.

The video was discovered as a U.S. Senate committee heard testimony on the U.S. military investigation into abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib. (Full story)

Earlier Tuesday, U.S. military officials said American soldiers have killed 13 Iraqi militia loyal to renegade Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and have detained 14 others in overnight fighting near Najaf.

Late Monday, members of al-Sadr's Mehdi Army attempted to ambush a U.S. convoy with small-arms fire. No American forces were injured in the incident.

The U.S. military began an offensive Sunday to retake control of parts of the city, reclaiming the governor's palace from al-Sadr's control.

Al-Sadr, who is wanted in connection with the killing of a rival cleric last year, launched an uprising against U.S. troops in April. Since then, coalition forces have cracked down on the cleric's strongholds while trying to avoid religious sites.

Al-Sadr is believed to be in Najaf, where his militia remains in control of much of the Shiite holy city. He travels to nearby Kufa to deliver weekly sermons Fridays.

[LRB]

Absolutely sick.

[Evilmav2]

Amidst all of the hubub caused by those idiots at Abu Ghraib, a vicious crime like this should remind us why we are in Iraq fighting these Mohammaden madmen to begin with.

If these murderous bastards weren't scurying around hiding from GI's in Iraq, Afghanistan, and on other battlefields, it would be that much easier for them to calmly plan newer, more effective ways of killing American civilians than kidnapping and beheading them- ways like flying jetliners into skyscrapers...

[reeds]

Does anyone know if it has be confirmed that it was Nicholas Berg who was murdered?? I am just curious???? Thanks...

[FishForLunch]

[FishForLunch]

So why dont we see the beheading, the press is not to eager to show this abuse to us, does not fit their agenda. Where is that idiot John McCain calling for an investigation and demanding an all out effort to get those bastards who did this?

Yes that is Nicholas Berg being executed

[MavKikiNYC]

Originally posted by: FishForLunch

Five proud bastard sons of Allah.

[MavKikiNYC]

I wonder if CBS and 60 Minutes II will be credited with an assist on this decapitation.

[FishForLunch]

The leftist goal is to see us run from Iraq with our tail behind our legs. Have you heard any outrage from the so called world leaders about this beheading, but naked Iraqis in a human pryamid are too much for them to bear. Where are the Islamic leaders condeming this beheading? I hope those outraged senators come up with guidelines on how to extract information humanely.

[Dirkenstien]

Originally posted by: FishForLunch
The leftist goal is to see us run from Iraq with our tail behind our legs. Have you heard any outrage from the so called world leaders about this beheading, but naked Iraqis in a human pryamid are too much for them to bear. Where are the Islamic leaders condeming this beheading? I hope those outraged senators come up with guidelines on how to extract information humanely.

good point FFL.... this is terrible.

[dude1394]

Poor, poor leftist democrats. All the while the the moron from minnesota and clinton, kennedy and the usual "useful idiots" are up there calling for rumsfeld's resignation, how horrible our soldiers are and frantically trying to get the US to admit defeat so they can relive their greatest vietnam triumph.

The scum show them what we are really fighting against. But it won't make a dent on them, it doesn't get them elected. Traitors.

[Drbio]

Originally posted by: reeds
Does anyone know if it has be confirmed that it was Nicholas Berg who was murdered?? I am just curious???? Thanks...

It is confirmed. His body was flown to Germany today.

[FishForLunch]

Graphic Images

The Iraqi detainees were responsible for blowing up our troops and kidnapping civilian contractors, may be they knew this bunch who beheaded this innocent American citizen.

[XERXES]

Sick barbarian caveman bastards.

Misery spreads misery...and these are miserable people...

I'm with Reeds and Mavdog and Ted Kennedy - lets pull all of our troops out of Iraq...



...and then send the Enola Gay straight through the heart of Fallujah.

[mercury_rev]

Wonder if the peaceful folks at CAIR will announce a condemnation of this atrocity?

[Mavdog]

Originally posted by: mercury_rev
Wonder if the peaceful folks at CAIR will announce a condemnation of this atrocity?

yes they did

Tuesday, May 11, 2004
CAIR condemns murder of American in Iraq

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today condemned the murder of an American civilian in Iraq by a group claiming links to Al-Qaeda.

A video posted on an Internet web site shows the beheading of a Philadelphia man working as a contractor in Iraq whose body was found on a highway overpass in Baghdad on Saturday. The group that carried out the killing said it was in retaliation for the ongoing Iraq prison abuse scandal.

In its statement, the Washington-based Islamic civil rights and advocacy group said:

"We condemn this cold-blooded murder and repudiate all those who commit such acts of mindless violence in the name of religion. We call on people of all faiths and cultures to work together for peace and reconciliation, not war and destruction."

CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 26 regional offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada.

I'm with Reeds and Mavdog and Ted Kennedy - lets pull all of our troops out of Iraq...

I have never advocated that we cut and run. I do believe that we shouldn't have invaded in the first place. Once we were on the ground in Iraq and dissembled their institutions we have the responsibility to repair/replace/rebuild them.

[mercury_rev]

"We condemn this cold-blooded murder and repudiate all those who commit such acts of mindless violence in the name of religion. We call on people of all faiths and cultures to work together for peace and reconciliation, not war and destruction."

How perfunctory. Notice that they don't mention Al Qaeda or militant Islam.

[reeds]

I never said we leave Iraq either..xerpes is putting words in my mouth...what else is new on this board

But of course if we never invaded in the first place, i wouldnt have to comment

[FishForLunch]

Why does he not also blame the terroists that did this to his son?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Berg Died for Bush, Rumsfeld 'Sins' - Father

By Jon Hurdle

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The father of Nick Berg, the American beheaded in Iraq (news - web sites), directly blamed President Bush (news - web sites) and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Thursday for his son's death.


"My son died for the sins of George Bush and Donald Rumsfeld. This administration did this," Berg said in an interview with radio station KYW-AM.


In the interview from outside his home in West Chester, Pennsylvania, a seething Michael Berg also said his 26-year-old son, a civilian contractor, probably would have felt positive, even about his executioners, until the last minute.


"I am sure that he only saw the good in his captors until the last second of his life," Berg said. "They did not know what they were doing. They killed their best friend."


Two days after the publication of a video showing the execution of his son by five masked men, Berg attacked the Bush administration for its invasion of Iraq and its sponsorship of the Patriot Act, which gives sweeping powers of surveillance to the federal government.

Berg described the Patriot Act as a "coup d'etat." He added: "It's not the same America I grew up in."

The criticism came amid finger-pointing between Berg's family, U.S. military officials and Iraqi police over the young businessman's imprisonment before his execution.


Michael Berg rejected U.S. government claims that his son had never been held by American authorities in Iraq. The Iraqi police chief in the city of Mosul has also contradicted statements by the U.S.-led coalition concerning the younger Berg's detention.


"I have a written statement from the State Department in Baghdad ... saying that my son was being held by the military," Berg said. "I can also assure you that the FBI came to my house on March 31 and told me that the FBI had him in Mosul in an Iraqi prison."


Dan Senor, spokesman for the Coalition Provisional Authority, said this week that Nick Berg was arrested in Mosul by Iraqi police on March 24 and released on April 6.


Senor said the FBI visited Berg three times during his detention by Iraqi police and determined that he was not involved in criminal or terrorist activities.


Brig.-Gen. Mark Kimmitt, the top U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said American military police had seen Berg during his detention to make sure he was being fed and treated properly.


Berg returned to Baghdad from Mosul in April and went missing on April 9, during a chaotic period when dozens of foreigners were snatched by guerrillas west of the capital.


His body was discovered by a road near Baghdad on Saturday. The video of his decapitation was posted on the Internet on Tuesday.

Berg had been in Baghdad from late December to Feb. 1 and returned to Iraq in March. He did not find work and planned to return home at the end of March, according to his parents.

Berg's communications to his parents stopped on March 24 and he told them later he was jailed by Iraqi officials after being picked up at a checkpoint in Mosul.

On April 5, the Bergs filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government, naming Rumsfeld and alleging their son was being held illegally by the U.S. military in Iraq. The next day, he was released. (additional reporting by Maher al-Thanoon)

[reeds]

Nick Berg's father has a valid point.. he blames bush because Mr. Bush wanted this war. The war caused Nick to go to Iraq. going to Iraq caused Nick to be murdered..a vicious cycle-bottom line is no WAR- No Death.

I know I know..the terroists did it- sure- you are correct. One thing leads to another. Its a tragedy, but it could have been prevented..the whole war could have been prevent...those damn WMD..oh wait..sorry...that was the first reason

[dude1394]

Unfortunately Nick Berg's father is full of it. Dubya led and the country agreed. Of course with the democrats they were only trying to cover their political ass at the times but tough. Kerry voted for the iraqi' invasion, dashle, clinton a pretty solid majority.

Of course the avowed enemies of america (kkk byrd and teddy kennedy) were true to their beliefs. And as expected the democrats are showing their true colors now, they enjoyed cutting and running so much in 'nam that they want a reprise. Traitors.

[MavKikiNYC]

Sympathies to the Berg family, whose grief clearly impairs their reason.

What's your excuse, Reeds?

[LRB]

Originally posted by: reeds
Nick Berg's father has a valid point.. he blames bush because Mr. Bush wanted this war. The war caused Nick to go to Iraq. going to Iraq caused Nick to be murdered..a vicious cycle-bottom line is no WAR- No Death.

I know I know..the terroists did it- sure- you are correct. One thing leads to another. Its a tragedy, but it could have been prevented..the whole war could have been prevent...those damn WMD..oh wait..sorry...that was the first reason

What a complete load of horses#!t!!! 1st of all no one but Nick Berg caused Nick Berg to go to Iraq. You'd have to be a complete dumbass not to realize it was extremely dangerous over there. 2nd of all those same sick bastards who killed Nick Berg may have done it another way if we hadn't started destroying their safe havens, like Iraq. But any way, shape, form or fashion that you slice it a bunch of scum of the earth whacko fantatical Muslim pigs killed Nick Berg.

But it is reasuring that to know that the democrats wish to give a free pardon to these guys who killed Nick Berg so that they can blame George Bush 100%. To hell with America and Americans the only thing that is important is insuring that democrats gain more political power.

[madape]

I just heard on CNN that Zacharias Moussaoui used Nick Berg's e-mail account to conduct terrorist communications prior to 9-11. This is why the Iraqi's stopped him from leaving the country. Apparently, Berg and Moussaoui became good friends while Moussaoui was learning how to fly wide-bodies into skyscrapers at the Airman Flight School in Oklahoma City.

[madape]

WASHINGTON — Nicholas Berg, the American businessman executed by Islamic extremists in Iraq, may have had contact with accused Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui (search).



FBI agents interviewed Berg a few years ago when they were investigating the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, sources said. He was interviewed because, unbeknownst to him, Moussaoui had used his e-mail account when he was in Oklahoma.

Sources close to the situation told Fox News that they believed the link to be "coincidental."

On Tuesday, a video surfaced on an Islamic Web site that showed Berg kneeling in front of five men who had their faces covered. After blasting the U.S. government for the prison abuse scandal at Iraq's Abu Ghraib (search) prison, one man takes a long knife and decapitates Berg.

Intelligence officials said Thursday that terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (search) was most likely the man who beheaded Berg.

The disclosure later Thursday that Berg may have had contact with Moussaoui deepened the mystery of the businessman's plight.

Berg attended the University of Oklahoma (search) and Moussaoui first settled in Norman, Okla., when he came to the United States. The accused co-conspirator used at least one of the university's computers to communicate online, according to the sources.

Sources said that the FBI concluded that Berg had innocently given his e-mail account to someone and it had landed in the hands of other people, including Moussaoui.

The federal government has vowed to seek Moussaoui's execution if he's convicted of participating in a terrorism conspiracy, along with the Sept. 11 hijackers. Moussaoui's lawyers are seeking to rule out the death penalty.

[reeds]

"Sympathies to the Berg family, whose grief clearly impairs their reason." PROVE that MAVKIKI...you want to beleive grief was the reason... Does it pain you to beleive that everyones opinion on this war does NOT agree with yours??? Sounds like it to me

[LRB]

"I am sure that he only saw the good in his captors until the last second of his life," Berg said. "They did not know what they were doing. They killed their best friend."

Maybe this guy was al Queda. I mean if his father is saying these things and his email account was used by an al Queda terrorist. Who the heck knows, but it looks like there was damn good reason to hold him in custody. This all looks very suspicious to me. If Ape's story is 100% true, then I just don't believe in coincidences of that magnitude.

[madape]

Another reason why Berg may have been detained:

Slain man held because he was a Jew

[dude1394]

I think you have it there 'ape. Of course I can think of another one. "Slain man held because he was human". Or replace the "human" with "non-muslim" pretty much the same thing it's starting to look like.

[madape]

I think Nick Berg's family prefers this one:

<u>Nick Berg held because Geroge W Bush is a rotten, lying bastard</u>

[twelli]

This is really confusing. A Jewish boy making friends with a 911 terrorist?

That makes absolutely no sense. If he went to Irak, convert to Islam and fight US troops, that would be at least somewhat comprehensible.

I rather believe the official story, that he went to Irak to help the people rebuild their country.

[dude1394]

It sort of sounds like he met him in the university, sort of became friends with him and went to iraq to both help them but also to do some bizness...

[madape]

After further review, I don't think Berg and Moussoui were "friends". This probably was just a coincidence. However, that doesn't mean this is not fishy, or that his presense in Iraq shouldn't have been investigated by the Coalition.

I think this lady has it right when she says:

Nicholas was definitely being detained by the coalition for any of the following suspicions:

a) He was loaded with electronics equipment, supposedly for his work on radio communications towers. Possessing sophisticated electronic gear in a war zone without producing any paperwork to prove that he is building radio towers probably set off alarm bells.

b) It was likely that Berg was on an FBI ''watch'' list. FBI agents interviewed Berg a few years ago when they were investigating the September 11 terrorist attacks because, unbeknownst to him, Zacarias Moussaoui, the so-called 20th hijacker, had used his e-mail account when both were in Oklahoma. On Thursday Fox News reported that the FBI dismissed the link between Berg and Moussaoui as ''coincidental.''

c) Speaking on condition of anonymity in one media report, a U.S. official said Iraqi authorities detained Berg ''for his own protection'' because his behavior in Mosul seemed unusual for a Westerner. Plus Berg, who was Jewish, had in his possession texts that were considered ''anti-Semitic'' in tone. One of his friends has been quoted as saying that the Iraqi police thought Berg was an Israeli spy. To add insult to injury, Berg was also carrying some literature written in Farsi including a book about Iran.

d) On April 10, after he was released, Berg visited an Iraqi man who was once married to his aunt. Question: did his former uncle have political ties that caused any suspicions for the coalition?

e) Because he belongs to a far-left peace group and was known to authorities, Nicholas Berg's father likely raised a red flag and was a possible reason that the FBI visited the family in suburban Philadelphia at least three times during the 13 days that Berg was detained.

[kg_veteran]

Originally posted by: LRB

What a complete load of horses#!t!!! 1st of all no one but Nick Berg caused Nick Berg to go to Iraq. You'd have to be a complete dumbass not to realize it was extremely dangerous over there. 2nd of all those same sick bastards who killed Nick Berg may have done it another way if we hadn't started destroying their safe havens, like Iraq. But any way, shape, form or fashion that you slice it a bunch of scum of the earth whacko fantatical Muslim pigs killed Nick Berg.

But it is reasuring that to know that the democrats wish to give a free pardon to these guys who killed Nick Berg so that they can blame George Bush 100%. To hell with America and Americans the only thing that is important is insuring that democrats gain more political power.

It amazes me how completely illogical people can be.

[Murphy3]

Originally posted by: kg_veteran

It amazes me how completely illogical people can be.

KG, it's what I hate both about the extreme left and the extreme right. They often replace logic with intense hatred for the other side. I don't even try to debate or reason with either side. There's so little you can do to reason with someone that has replaced logic with hatred. Fortunately, there's not many people on this site that sway way too far to the right. Unfortunately, there's a few that sway way too far to the left.

I just wish they'd mix in a little common sense...a little logic.

[MavKikiNYC]

Originally posted by: reeds
"Sympathies to the Berg family, whose grief clearly impairs their reason." PROVE that MAVKIKI...you want to beleive grief was the reason... Does it pain you to beleive that everyones opinion on this war does NOT agree with yours??? Sounds like it to me

I don't have to prove anything, Dingleberry. It's a phukkin' opinion.

And no, it doesn't pain me to have a different perspective from some amoebic intellect like you. It's actually rather reassuring.

[Mavdog]

Originally posted by: LRB

What a complete load of horses#!t!!! 1st of all no one but Nick Berg caused Nick Berg to go to Iraq. You'd have to be a complete dumbass not to realize it was extremely dangerous over there. 2nd of all those same sick bastards who killed Nick Berg may have done it another way if we hadn't started destroying their safe havens, like Iraq. But any way, shape, form or fashion that you slice it a bunch of scum of the earth whacko fantatical Muslim pigs killed Nick Berg.

You're correct LRB, noone to blame but the killers, and Berg for putting himself in harm's way in a very dangerous area. That doesn't minimize the savageness of their act, which is not making them friends on the Arab street.

Iraq was indeed a "safe haven" for brutality and crude acts such as this.

But it is reasuring that to know that the democrats wish to give a free pardon to these guys who killed Nick Berg so that they can blame George Bush 100%. To hell with America and Americans the only thing that is important is insuring that democrats gain more political power.

Way off the mark, extremism to say the least.

[LRB]

Quote

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But it is reasuring that to know that the democrats wish to give a free pardon to these guys who killed Nick Berg so that they can blame George Bush 100%. To hell with America and Americans the only thing that is important is insuring that democrats gain more political power.
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Way off the mark, extremism to say the least.

The last bit is sarcasm and is directed at the left wing extremists who do wish to place the blame on Bush. Certainly not all Democrats believe this, but I would hope that mainstream Democrats would make the effort that you have to distance themselves and their party from this extremists stance. It's fine to disagree with Bush's policies and whether the war in Iraq is justified. However to find terrorist largely or wholely blameless for murdering innocents to gain political advantage is something no patriotic American should ever consider.

[twelli]

Imagine, an Arab civilian is beheaded by American fanatics in the USA and they film it and all. I guess thousands of Americans would take to the streets to protest against such a barbaric act of cruelty. So, where are the thousands of Arabs taking to the streets in the Middle East condemning terrorist acts like that?

I wonder how many people in the Middle East silently support or at least approve terrorism. Are there many people against it, but afraid to step up? My believe is that no matter where people live or what they believe, peace and prosperity should always be what they want more than war and terrorism. So, why are so many people down there so fanatic?

[dude1394]

Unfortunately the only thing that the arab culture has created in the last 50 years is the sucide bomber and the terrorist it seems. So my guess is that 50% easily support them as long as they are infidels and especially if they are in the lands previously islmic. As their religion says they have to be re-converted.