Oh, by the way...in case anyone forgot:
It's al Qaeda, stupid.
Y'know...the ones we were supposed to go after instead of Iraq? Just checking.
Beheaded hostage 'had been warned to leave Iraq'
A US civilian hostage who was beheaded in Iraq had been warned to leave the country but refused to, US officials said today.
Today, a US official told the Associated Press that Berg had been in Iraq "of his own accord", and had been advised to leave the country but declined to do so. The official refused to elaborate, but said more information would be released later today.
According to his family, Berg, from Philadelphia, owned a small telecommunications business and wanted to find work rebuilding Iraq.
He spoke to his parents on March 24 - when he was later detained by Iraqi police at a Mosul checkpoint - and told them he would return home on March 30. He was then handed over to US officials and detained for 13 days. His father, Michael, said his son had not been allowed to make phone calls or contact a lawyer.
On April 5, the Bergs filed suit at the federal court in Philadelphia, contending that their son was being held illegally by the US military. He was released the next day, and told his family that he had not been mistreated.
His relatives last heard from him on April 9, but it was unclear when and where he was abducted. His body was found in Baghdad on Saturday, the day of his beheading.
