A previously unknown group has threatened to kill American journalist Jill Carroll within 72 hours if the United States does not free its female Iraqi prisoners.
The 28-year old journalist was abducted earlier this month while reporting on the US-led invasion in Iraq.
The group, calling itself the "Brigades of Vengeance," filmed the video of Carroll and her captors which was then broadcast by the Al Jazeera network.
Following a video broadcast on Tuesday, Carroll's colleagues appealed on her behalf, stressing that she was an ardent critic of the invasion and US policy in Iraq.
Carroll had been working for the The Christian Science Monitor, and was abducted along with her Iraqi interpreter, who has since been killed.
Carroll's family begged her captors to show mercy after viewing the video.
"Jill is an innocent journalist and we respectfully ask that you please show her mercy and allow her to return home to her mother, sister and family," a statement by her family said, according to Reuters.
"Jill is a kind person whose love for Iraq and the Iraqi people are evident in her articles. She has been welcomed into the homes of many Iraqis and shown every courtesy. From that experience, she understands the hardships and suffering that the Iraqi people face every day," they added.
Richard Bergenheim, editor of The Christian Science Monitor, expressed Carroll's unwavering support for the rights of Iraqis.
Appealing to her captors, he stated, "They have seized an innocent person who is a great admirer of the Iraqi people."
"She is a professional journalist whose only goal has been to report truthfully about Iraq and to promote understanding," he added.
US officials vowed to do what they could to secure her prompt release.
"We will make every effort to work with the Iraqis to bring her back safe and sound as soon as possible," a spokesman for the US State Department said.
Officials have refused, however, to reveal whether or not they will consider the demands of Carroll's captors by releasing Iraqi women prisoners under their control.
Carroll is the 31st journalist abducted in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003.
12 die in Baghdad as violence continues
11 Iraqi security personnel were killed on Wednesday in Baghdad in a fierce gun battle between civilian-clothed security forces and gunmen. The incident apparently followed an attack on a security convoy in the western district of the capital.
The convoy was reportedly traveling at the time through the Jamia district of the city when it was attacked, according to police Captain Qassim Hussein.
A civilian and another security worker were also wounded in the deadly attack, according to the Press Association.
In a separate incident, a Shiite cleric was killed as he was leaving his mosque in the Ma'amil district of Baghdad.
The victim, 32-year old Sheikh Shakir Hiriz Al Yasiri, was apparently the target of a drive-by shooting.
Religious leaders as well as security forces have been prime targets for gunmen in Iraq's protracted violence.
Elsewhere, a roadside bomb hit a convoy carrying a U.S. security team near the southern city of Basra, killing two American civilians and seriously wounding a third, the U.S. Embassy said.
© 2006 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
