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Freed egyptian says treated well by iraqi captors Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)    http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5783890 http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=5783890 Freed Egyptian Says Treated Well by Iraqi Captors Tue Jul 27, 2004 07:13 AM ET BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Three days after they seized him as he walked home from a Baghdad mosque, Egyptian diplomat Mohamed Mamdouh Qutb's captors gave him a dagger, a string of prayer beads -- and an apology. "At the beginning they threatened to kill me," Qutb, third secretary at Egypt's embassy in Baghdad, told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday a day after his release. "But later they apologized and at the end they gave me a string of prayer beads and a dagger as presents." Qutb said four masked gunmen in a car seized him as he walked home from Friday prayers. The next time his colleagues saw him was on a video sent to Al Jazeera television, showing him kneeling and surrounded by black-clad hooded guerrillas. Qutb said that although his captors were violent at first, they changed their behavior after speaking to him, and overall he was treated well by the kidnappers, who were all Iraqis. Relaxed and smiling at the Egyptian embassy, he said the kidnappers had seized him to protest against Egypt receiving Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi on an official visit last week. "I told them that Egypt supports the Iraqi people and when we help in building hospitals and schools we do it for the Iraqi people and not for individuals or for the multinational forces," Qutb said. He said his kidnappers told him they refused many ransom offers for his release because "they didn't do it for money." While in captivity, Qutb knew nothing about mediation efforts to win his release. "I knew after my release that the Iraqi and Egyptian governments and Muslim Clerics' Association mediated for my release," he said. Kidnappers have seized dozens of foreigners since April to press demands for foreign troops to leave Iraq, to deter foreigners from working with U.S. forces or to extract ransoms. "I think it was a vivid experience," Qutb said. "I just hope it doesn't happen again."

berg-beheading Hassoun jill_carroll johnson-beheading 3 kidnapped in kabul { October 29 2004 } 6 egyptians 2 iraqis kidnapped in iraq { September 24 2004 } Afghan militants threaten united nations hostages { November 1 2004 } Aid worker hassan believed slain in video Alqaeda says kills egypt envoy in iraq Alqaeda website shows egyptian diplomat kidnapped { July 6 2005 } Brits rescue peace activists held hostage in iraq Egyptian diplomat kidnapped in iraq { July 23 2004 } Egyptians and iraqis kidnapped { September 25 2004 } Filipino hostage released in iraq after pullout { July 20 2004 } Freed egyptian says treated well by iraqi captors French journalist freed in iraq after 5 months Hostage begs britain to pull its troops out { October 23 2004 } Imprisoned women not freed as tensions grow Iraqi militants free two hostages Italian journalist held hostage pleads for life { February 16 2005 } Italy horror at hostage execution Japanese hostages freed { April 15 2004 } Japanese south koreans kidnapped by iraqis { April 8 2004 } Japanese studying depleted uranium taken hostage { April 12 2004 } Jeffrey ake from indiana pleads for his life { April 14 2005 } Kidnapped aid workers in afghanistan released Kidnapped polish woman freed Kidnappers snatch 2 americans 1 briton from homes Marine in kidnap video charged with desertion { December 10 2004 } Militants release video of japanese hostage { October 27 2004 } Peace group kidnapped in iraq { October 2005 } Philippines troops out of iraq Ransom from italians seen as fueling crisis { September 29 2004 } Second hostage killed in iraq Six foreign truck drivers threatened with beheading Tape of bigley decapitation posted on web Third beheading was south korean who spoke arabic Three headless bodies discovered north of baghdad Three iraqi kurd hostages beheaded Three members of allawi family abducted { November 10 2004 } Video of 11 iraqi soliders executed posted on web Video on web site shows beheading of man Files Listed: 38

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