Militants led by suspected al Qaeda ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi killed a Bulgarian hostage in Iraq and vowed to execute a second within 24 hours unless U.S.-led forces freed prisoners. The Arabic television station Al Jazeera said on Tuesday it had decided not to broadcast a video tape from the militants showing the execution because it was too gruesome. But Al Jazeera showed footage of three masked men with one of the Bulgarians kneeling before them in a blindfold and orange jumpsuit, typical of U.S. jails and associated around the world with images of Muslims detained at Guantanamo Bay. “I am speechless,” said Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Passy, whose country has contributed 470 troops to U.S.-led forces in Iraq. His deputy Gergana Grancharova said: “We all saw the cruel video scenes. The news is true and shattering.” Government officials would not disclose which of the two truck drivers, Georgi Lazov, 30, and Ivailo Kepov, 32, had been killed. The men disappeared on June 27. Full Story
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