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Filipinos Out of Iraq
Insurgents targeted the Iraqi police again yesterday as the last of the Philippine troops left the country. Kidnappers freed an Egyptian hostage, but there was no word on Angelo dela Cruze for whose freedom Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo withdrew his country's contingent of 51 peacekeepers. The Philippines said it had completed the withdrawal of its humanitarian military contingent in Iraq a month ahead of schedule. An official at the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait said 34 soldiers left their base in Iraq yesterday. Eleven were withdrawn last week. A few Filipino soldiers are expected to remain in Baghdad to protect the Philippine Embassy. Despite the release of the Egyptian hostage and Manila's hopes that dela Cruz will also soon be freed, diplomats say there is little hope that a Bulgarian hostage is still alive. A group led by Jordanian-born Al-Qaeda ally Abu Mussab Al-Zarqawi seized two Bulgarians earlier this month and sent video footage to Al-Jazeera showing one of them being beheaded.Posted by: Fred 2004-07-20 |
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