German archaeologist hostage in Irag

[Troll]

Seen on this evenings channel four news at seven. Female German archaeologist has been taken hostage in Iraq and shown on video. Does this sound like Archaeologists for Human Rights? Anyone heard any more?[?]

[kevin wooldridge]

I have just been into the Berliner Zeitung website and the story is tomorrows headline.

To summarise: Susanna Osthof is a 43 year old archaeologist from Glonn in Bavaria. She is the first German to be kidnapped in Iraq. She went missing after travelling overland last Friday. Usual story about video and demands of kidnappers. Nowhere in the story does it say whether she was representing Archaeologists for Human Rights.

In our thoughts....

[sniper]

from what I can see, she was recording looted sites rather than digging mass graves, so I guess she isn't Archaeologists for Human Rights though I can't see who she was working for, if anyone...

++ i spend my days rummaging around in dead people ++

[Post-Med Potterer]

According to the BBC Susanne Osthoff is an 'aid-worker'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_...483760.stm

[BAJR Host]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051130/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq
"The brief, blurry tape was shown the same day German TV displayed a photo of a blindfolded German archaeologist being led away by armed captors in Iraq. The kidnappers threatened to kill Susanne Osthoff and her Iraqi driver unless Germany halts all contacts with the Iraqi government."

And so what do we do...... ???

Any ideas.... and quick.

Any idea who to contact? Who to write to, who to send support to?
:face-confused:


Another day another WSI?

[BAJR Host]

http://translate.google.com/translate?so...635%2Ehtml

Can someone also make people on Britarch aware... perhaps it may stop the squabbling...!

If we can produce a united front... and also on behalf of the other hostages... it may add to pressure. Better than doing nothing.



Another day another WSI?

[Real Job]

Difficult. We could send e-mails to the german federal govt (collectively or individually) asking that they grant the kidnappers financial demands. You can e-mail the govt's press office here http://www.bundesregierung.de/en/Service.../Email.htm

Ultimately the best thing we can do is increase the pressure on the occupying forces to pull out of Iraq.

[Post-Med Potterer]

I am not sure that I agree with RealJob here. Granting the kidnappers financial demands is not the best long term solution. It certainly isn't UK Govt policy and according to the article posted by our host isn't the German one either. However one official quoted in the article does say that "if one Mrs. Osthoff to help wants, one within a grey range to move have", suggesting a certain flexibility.

Sympathetic though I am to the plight of individuals I have to say that any non-military westerner in Iraq is there through choice and should know the risks. Look at the Foreign Office guidance (http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?page...3618386640) which essentially says 'don't go, or if you must then realise that you will probably be kidnapped or shot at or both'.

According to the BBC the 'German Foreign Ministry has set up a crisis team to help in securing the release of the hostages'. However the German Foreign Ministry's otherwise excellent website is a bit lacking on recent information on the situation in Iraq (http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/www/en/la...index_html).

[BAJR Host]

True... I worked in Jordan, where sympathies are mixed.. and the recent bombs show not even this 'safe' country is safe. I do feel though that we (as archaeologists) often feel we are immune... ... hey we are there and often are part of a local community for a substantial time, .... if the mere fact that hundreds of archaeologists across the world say ... NO... then it might make an iota of difference.. or maybe it won't... but to stand by and do nothing...

To kick off.. I am creating an online petition to gather names... will come back this evening with details.... I would then hope everyone to sign... to tell friends to sign and to generally pass it around every archaeolgoist they know.... will take 1 minute to sign... can we spare that??

Another day another WSI?

[kevin wooldridge]

quote:Originally posted by Post-Med Potterer

Sympathetic though I am to the plight of individuals I have to say that any non-military westerner in Iraq is there through choice and should know the risks.

I have been trying to get more details on Ms Osthoff. According to Das Bild she has been in Iraq since 1984 and has a 12 year-old child. She was there during the 1991 conflict and helped to organise distribution of German generated aid. Kind of sounds as if she is there for the long haul and not a recent arrival.