Iraq rebels threaten to kill Frenchman; demand end to their "illegitimate presence"

[MikeKAY]

Iraq rebels threaten to kill French hostage

DUBAI (AFX) - An Iraqi rebel group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of French engineer Bernard Planche, threatening to kill him if France did not end its 'illegitimate presence in Iraq', Agence France-Presse reported.

In a video broadcast by Al-Arabiya television, the group, calling itself the Battalion of the Look-out for Iraq, threatened to kill Planche if France does not 'end its illegitimate presence in Iraq,' said the channel's presenter.

The Dubai-based channel showed a black-and-white video bearing the group's logo and showing a man with a moustache on his knees and wearing a dark polo shirt with two gunmen stood behind him.

Planche was seized on Dec 5 from his home in an upmarket Baghdad neighborhood. He was in Iraq working for a little known non-governmental group called AACCESS, as a mechanical engineer specializing in water distribution systems.

http://www.forbes.com/work/feeds/afx...fx2418309.html

I guess there is something to be said for living under a rock for extended periods of time.