|
We will not bow to Al Qaeda's demands: Austria
Austrian Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer appealed on Friday to Al Qaedas North Africa wing to release two Austrian tourists but said he had no intention of yielding to the hostage-takers demands.Our priority is the health of the hostages. Hence we appeal to the kidnappers to free the hostages unconditionally, Gusenbauer told reporters on arrival for the final day of a European Union summit in Brussels. Gusenbauer said he would raise the issue for discussion at the summit. He said Austria was in touch with the authorities in the region, adding, We do not intend to meet the demands. Al Qaeda demanded on Thursday the release of militants held in Tunisia and Algeria within three days. The three-day ultimatum began at midnight on Thursday, according to a statement issued by Al Qaeda on an Islamist website. Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik said on Thursday that efforts were being made to secure the release of the hostages but noted that the demands were outside Viennas jurisdiction. In its posting which contained the pictures of hostages Andrea Kloiber, 43, and Wolfgang Ebner, 51, Al Qaeda said the demands and a list of the names of the groups prisoners had been sent to Vienna through unidentified mediators. The group, waging a violent campaign against government forces and foreign interests in North Africa, said its members had been jailed for confronting the new crusade against Islam. The hostages, who went missing last month during a trip to Tunisia, appeared in the pictures dressed in robes and surrounded by militants in a desert area. Their captors were armed with rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. Posted by: Fred 2008-03-15 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=233411 |