NEVER TRUST COINCIDENCE:

Think Again: Deconstructing the Attack on Jill Carroll: Pundits should have put a little more thought into the circumstances Carroll found herself in during those first chaotic and still-terrifying hours (Eric Alterman, April 06 , 2006, Mother Jones)

With some conservatives pretending to be on the “front lines,” some were actively slamming Carroll for being held hostage in the first place. After Carroll told a Washington Post reporter that “I was never hurt, ever hit ... I was kept in a safe place and treated very well,” the guys over at the Brothers Judd blog wrote that she “may as well just come right out and say she was a willing participant.” And in an exchange between Don Imus’ executive producer Bernard McGuirk and sidekick Charles McCord, McGuirk said that Carroll “strikes me as the kind of woman who would wear one of those suicide vests,” and that, “she may be carrying Habib’s baby at this point.”

Indeed, the fundamental questions remain why she was where she was and why they let her go. On the surface her case resembles that of Giuliana Sgrena and Susanne Osthoff, but we look forward to her explanation of why it isn't.

MORE:
Cindy Sheehan's allies (Robert Novak, Aug 20, 2005, Townhall)

At Cindy Sheehan's side since Aug. 6 when she began her antiwar protest outside President Bush's Texas ranch have been three groups that openly support the Iraqi insurgency against U.S. troops: Code Pink-Women For Peace, United for Peace & Justice, and Veterans For Peace.

Those organizations were represented at a mock "war crimes" trial in Istanbul that on June 27 produced a joint declaration backing the insurgency. Based on the United Nations Charter, it said "the popular national resistance to the occupation is legitimate and justified. It deserves the support of people everywhere who care for justice and freedom."

The Istanbul statement also rejected U.S. efforts to leave behind a democratic government in Iraq, asserting: "Any law or institution created under the aegis of occupation is devoid of both legal and moral authority."

Remembering Marla Ruzicka (Code Pink)

Marla was killed in a car bomb in Baghdad on April 16, 2005. Marla joined CODEPINK in our first trip to Iraq, and stayed on to help Iraqis.

Mourning Marla (Jill Carroll, April 18, 2005, Christian Science Monitor)
Jill Carroll arrives home: After 82 days in captivity, Carroll arrived in Boston to join her family Sunday. (Scott Peterson and Dan Murphy, 4/03/06, The Christian Science Monitor)

That video appeared Thursday, March 30, on a jihadist website that carries videos of beheadings and attacks on American forces. [...]

In making their last video, Mr. Carroll says, her captors "obviously wanted maximum propaganda value in the US. After listening to them for three months she already knew exactly what they wanted her to say, so she gave it to them with appropriate acting to make it look convincing."

UPDATE:
Exclusive: Jill Carroll Middle Man Says Kidnappers Demanded $8 Million (ABC News, April 12, 2006)

The man behind Jill Carroll's release tells ABC News in an exclusive interview that kidnapping the American journalist was a mistake. Sheikh Sattam al-Gaaod reveals what it took to free her — and why he supports the resistance.

Al-Gaaod was one of three people specifically thanked by Carroll's family after her release.

"They are defending their country," he said in an interview at his summer house outside Amman, Jordan. "They are an honest resistance. And sometimes they do mistakes."

One mistake, he said, was kidnapping Carroll. Al-Gaaod said he used his influence to help free her... [...]

Al-Gaaod said he believes attacks on U.S. troops are justifiable because the Americans are occupiers, but he calls attacks on civilians criminal.

The editor of the Christian Science Monitor said today he was unaware of any ransom payment paid by anyone.

Contrary to the hysteria of some folks, you can be glad that she was released without being so naive as to believe the official story. Given the series of examples, it wouldn't seem that controversial to observe that if you support the ends of the Sunni terrorists and facilitate a transfer payment to their cause you're more likely to be released unharmed than if you work for the reconstruction effort.

MORE:
Kidnapped Reporter Had Unlikely Friend (The Boston Channel, April 13, 2006)

We're learning more about the road to freedom for kidnapped reporter Jill Carroll, who was released two weeks ago.

It turns out the former hostage from Massachusetts had an unlikely friend behind enemy lines.

NewsCenter 5's Mary Saladna reported that there were three people Carroll's family specifically thanked for her safe return when she was released from her captors, one of them a sheik who was once one of Saddam Hussein's closest business associates. He says he's now one of the proud leaders of the Iraqi insurgents.

"They are defending their country and they are honest resistancy and sometimes they do mistakes," he said.

Unlikely?

Posted by Orrin Judd at April 10, 2006 3:17 PM