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Web site: Al Qaeda in Iraq abducted Egyptian envoy
Bahraini, Pakistani diplomats attacked in Baghdad
Tuesday, July 5, 2005; Posted: 4:37 p.m. EDT (20:37 GMT)
Egyptian envoy Ihab al-Sherif, in an undated photograph, was abducted Saturday in Baghdad.
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Al Qaeda in Iraq -- the group headed by wanted militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi -- purportedly has claimed responsibility for kidnapping Egypt's top diplomat in Iraq.
"We announce, al Qaeda in Iraq, that the Egyptian ambassador had been kidnapped by our mujahedeen, and he is under their control," said a statement on an Islamic Web site linked to the group.
CNN could not confirm the statement's authenticity.
The posting said al-Zarqawi is expected to issue a longer announcement soon.
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita said if the al Qaeda claim is accurate, the move is just another blow to the Iraqi people by the ongoing insurgency.
"If it is true that al Qaeda has snatched this diplomat, I think it suggests what we know to be the case, that al Qaeda has targeted those countries that are trying to cooperate in the success of Iraq's emerging democracy," Di Rita said.
The Web site message came Tuesday as insurgents targeted two other diplomats from Muslim countries, attacking a convoy that carried Pakistan's ambassador and wounding Bahrain's chargé d'affaires.
The Egyptian envoy, Ihab al-Sherif, was abducted Saturday near his home in Baghdad. Al-Sherif had arrived in Iraq in June to become ambassador, the first to represent an Arab country after Saddam Hussein's ouster in 2003.
He had not formally presented his credentials as ambassador to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.
In the first of Tuesday's attacks, gunmen in a pickup opened fire on the car of Hassan al-Ansari, Bahrain's top diplomat, police said.
Al-Ansari was stable after being shot in one of his hands, said Yousef Mohammed Mahmoud, deputy foreign minister of the Persian Gulf nation.
Mahmoud described the attack as a kidnapping attempt.
A senior Bahraini official said al-Ansari would return home because of the dangerous security situation in Iraq.
"We'll study the possibility of sending him back when things are better and clearer," the official said.
In the second attack, assailants opened fire on a three-car convoy carrying Mohammed Younis Khan, Pakistan's top diplomat to Iraq.
The convoy was traveling in west-central Baghdad's Mansour district when gunmen in two vehicles opened fire.
Bodyguards shot back. One of the cars in the convoy received light damage, but no injuries were reported.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has pointed to Egypt as an example of a country from the region providing political support to Iraq.
"One thing that we'd like to encourage or that the region would like to encourage ... that the Iraqis would like to encourage is more diplomatic representation from the region. And the Egyptians are, in effect, an example of how important that is," Rice said in June.
Nevertheless, the insurgent attacks on diplomats from the Muslim world show the possible dangers that come with recognizing Iraq's new government.
Laith Kubba, a spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, acknowledged the insurgent efforts to intimidate officials from other countries.
"These are only desperate attempts by the terrorists," Kubba said. "If you take a look on the abilities of these terrorist groups and also take a look on the new support for Iraq, I believe that the support to Iraq will prevail."
Sunnis to join constitutional panel
In an effort to include more Sunni Arabs in the new Shiite- and Kurd-dominated government, the committee drafting Iraq's constitution will add 15 Sunni members to its ranks Tuesday, said an aide to the panel's chairman.
The weeklong move to diversify political participation had been stalled in part because Sunni groups couldn't agree on who should join an expanded committee.
In the end, about 50 Sunni leaders from various religious, tribal and political organizations nominated the new members.
A majority of Sunni Arabs -- who dominated Iraq under Saddam -- boycotted the January 30 elections, resulting in a scant 17-member representation in the 275-seat National Assembly.
The original constitutional committee of 55 members included two Sunni Arabs, prompting criticism from many Iraqis that the government had to add more Sunnis to the political process.
The 15 new members won't join the National Assembly but will have voting rights in the transitional body's deliberations, according to the aide to Humam Hammoodi, chairman of the constitutional committee.
As the August 15 deadline for drafting the new constitution approaches, the Iraqi and American governments have stressed the importance of delivering the document on time.
But substantial divisions remain on several issues, including the role of federalism in the new government, the status of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk and the role of Islam as a source of law.
Other developments
A bomb in southern Diyala province killed one U.S. soldier and wounded two others, all members of Task Force Liberty, according to a U.S. military statement. With the death, 1,745 U.S. troops have died in the Iraq war.
# Gunmen in an Opel sedan opened fire Tuesday on a minivan carrying female civil servants to work at Baghdad International Airport, killing four and wounding three others, police said.
# American soldiers killed an insurgent and wounded two others Tuesday in the northern city of Tal Afar, the U.S. military said. Six suspected insurgents also were detained in nearby Mosul, the military said.
Iraqi and American soldiers have detained at least 100 suspected terrorists in Operation Muthana Strike, launched Monday, the U.S. military said. A military statement said the operation targeted suspected terrorist safe houses west of the Baghdad airport.
CNN's Caroline Faraj, Kevin Flowers, Cal Perry and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.
Bahraini, Pakistani diplomats attacked in Baghdad
Tuesday, July 5, 2005; Posted: 4:37 p.m. EDT (20:37 GMT)
Egyptian envoy Ihab al-Sherif, in an undated photograph, was abducted Saturday in Baghdad.
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Al Qaeda in Iraq -- the group headed by wanted militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi -- purportedly has claimed responsibility for kidnapping Egypt's top diplomat in Iraq.
"We announce, al Qaeda in Iraq, that the Egyptian ambassador had been kidnapped by our mujahedeen, and he is under their control," said a statement on an Islamic Web site linked to the group.
CNN could not confirm the statement's authenticity.
The posting said al-Zarqawi is expected to issue a longer announcement soon.
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita said if the al Qaeda claim is accurate, the move is just another blow to the Iraqi people by the ongoing insurgency.
"If it is true that al Qaeda has snatched this diplomat, I think it suggests what we know to be the case, that al Qaeda has targeted those countries that are trying to cooperate in the success of Iraq's emerging democracy," Di Rita said.
The Web site message came Tuesday as insurgents targeted two other diplomats from Muslim countries, attacking a convoy that carried Pakistan's ambassador and wounding Bahrain's chargé d'affaires.
The Egyptian envoy, Ihab al-Sherif, was abducted Saturday near his home in Baghdad. Al-Sherif had arrived in Iraq in June to become ambassador, the first to represent an Arab country after Saddam Hussein's ouster in 2003.
He had not formally presented his credentials as ambassador to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.
In the first of Tuesday's attacks, gunmen in a pickup opened fire on the car of Hassan al-Ansari, Bahrain's top diplomat, police said.
Al-Ansari was stable after being shot in one of his hands, said Yousef Mohammed Mahmoud, deputy foreign minister of the Persian Gulf nation.
Mahmoud described the attack as a kidnapping attempt.
A senior Bahraini official said al-Ansari would return home because of the dangerous security situation in Iraq.
"We'll study the possibility of sending him back when things are better and clearer," the official said.
In the second attack, assailants opened fire on a three-car convoy carrying Mohammed Younis Khan, Pakistan's top diplomat to Iraq.
The convoy was traveling in west-central Baghdad's Mansour district when gunmen in two vehicles opened fire.
Bodyguards shot back. One of the cars in the convoy received light damage, but no injuries were reported.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has pointed to Egypt as an example of a country from the region providing political support to Iraq.
"One thing that we'd like to encourage or that the region would like to encourage ... that the Iraqis would like to encourage is more diplomatic representation from the region. And the Egyptians are, in effect, an example of how important that is," Rice said in June.
Nevertheless, the insurgent attacks on diplomats from the Muslim world show the possible dangers that come with recognizing Iraq's new government.
Laith Kubba, a spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, acknowledged the insurgent efforts to intimidate officials from other countries.
"These are only desperate attempts by the terrorists," Kubba said. "If you take a look on the abilities of these terrorist groups and also take a look on the new support for Iraq, I believe that the support to Iraq will prevail."
Sunnis to join constitutional panel
In an effort to include more Sunni Arabs in the new Shiite- and Kurd-dominated government, the committee drafting Iraq's constitution will add 15 Sunni members to its ranks Tuesday, said an aide to the panel's chairman.
The weeklong move to diversify political participation had been stalled in part because Sunni groups couldn't agree on who should join an expanded committee.
In the end, about 50 Sunni leaders from various religious, tribal and political organizations nominated the new members.
A majority of Sunni Arabs -- who dominated Iraq under Saddam -- boycotted the January 30 elections, resulting in a scant 17-member representation in the 275-seat National Assembly.
The original constitutional committee of 55 members included two Sunni Arabs, prompting criticism from many Iraqis that the government had to add more Sunnis to the political process.
The 15 new members won't join the National Assembly but will have voting rights in the transitional body's deliberations, according to the aide to Humam Hammoodi, chairman of the constitutional committee.
As the August 15 deadline for drafting the new constitution approaches, the Iraqi and American governments have stressed the importance of delivering the document on time.
But substantial divisions remain on several issues, including the role of federalism in the new government, the status of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk and the role of Islam as a source of law.
Other developments
A bomb in southern Diyala province killed one U.S. soldier and wounded two others, all members of Task Force Liberty, according to a U.S. military statement. With the death, 1,745 U.S. troops have died in the Iraq war.
# Gunmen in an Opel sedan opened fire Tuesday on a minivan carrying female civil servants to work at Baghdad International Airport, killing four and wounding three others, police said.
# American soldiers killed an insurgent and wounded two others Tuesday in the northern city of Tal Afar, the U.S. military said. Six suspected insurgents also were detained in nearby Mosul, the military said.
Iraqi and American soldiers have detained at least 100 suspected terrorists in Operation Muthana Strike, launched Monday, the U.S. military said. A military statement said the operation targeted suspected terrorist safe houses west of the Baghdad airport.
CNN's Caroline Faraj, Kevin Flowers, Cal Perry and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.