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December 22, 2005

Did The Germans Cave?

German Trade-off Suspected in Release of Terrorist Killer

(CNSNews.com) - Germany freed the murderer of a U.S. Navy diver despite personal intervention by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, the State Department has confirmed, amid speculation that Berlin let the Hizballah terrorist go as part of a deal to free a German hostage in Iraq.

Mohammed Ali Hamadi flew to Lebanon after being released last week, 18 years after he was sentenced to "life" imprisonment for hijacking a U.S. airliner in 1985 and killing 23-year-old Petty Officer Robert Stethem.

Lebanon does not have an extradition treaty with the U.S., and Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora appeared unmoved Wednesday by American requests that Hamadi be handed over. (snip)

Hamadi reportedly flew to Lebanon last Thursday. Three days later, Berlin announced that Susanne Osthoff, an archaeologist taken hostage in Iraq on Nov. 25, was safely in German hands.

"Several officials have said Osthoff's release did not involve paying ransom money, but was rather a 'diplomatic gesture.' It remains a source of speculation what that gesture was."

Officials declined to provide details of the negotiations with the hostage-takers. Deputy Foreign Minister Gernot Erler said Monday that doing so could benefit the perpetrators of future kidnappings.

The perps have already "benefitted" Mr Erler as now they are aware that the German government will trade high value terrorist murderers for hostages.

Companion OpiniPundit

Posted by: Traderrob at 10:53 AM | Comments (23) | Add Comment
Post contains 230 words, total size 2 kb.

1 Of course they caved, and they did it without a second thought, because not only did they get a positive return out of it, it also satisfied their animosity toward America at the same time.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at December 22, 2005 11:16 AM (0yYS2)

2 "Did The Germans Cave?

Is the sky blue? Is water wet? Are Liberals self-loathing traitors? Of course the Germans caved. That's why we don't go to the Euroweenies for permission-- because they cave.

Posted by: dcb at December 22, 2005 11:41 AM (8e/V4)

3 I was expecting a bit more from the new PM.....silly me.

Posted by: traderrob at December 22, 2005 11:47 AM (3al54)

4 NO, this is what happens when beliefs in American exceptionalism (blind nationalism) begins to hinder and break down cooperation among the world community. This cooperation is necessary for US hegemony, but for some reason the self proclaimed "patriots" running this country do not see it. Remember, in 1930s Germany, they thought the same thing. Nazi Germmans thought they were "the master race" whose duty it was to spread "civilization" by force. Sound familiar followers of Prescott?

See, when you ignore intl law because you are so much better than "old europe" those "liberal pinko pussies" they have no reason to cooperate with you, and thus become antagonistic. Germany letting that guy go essentially says "blow us stupid."

So again, have fun telling each other how much better you are than everyone else and how everyone who disagrees with you are traitors and such. Ya , ya , I know, for freedom and liberty we need an emperor that can use arbitrary executive power for Jesus to return. Yes, spying on Americans is patriotic as is torturing people and fighting war for peace. ROwell saw you guys coming.

DOg patch america wont stand, read a book, turn off that TV.

ernie

Posted by: ernie at December 22, 2005 12:16 PM (X4Dyg)

5 ernie,
Whoa what a load of crap you just spewed. The outrage here has nothing to do with Germany not following our directions. This has to do with them having no balls. You should not give in to kidnappers - it ENCOURAGES kidnapping. They are appeasers of terrorists and more Germans will be kidnapped now that they capitulated on this one.
America has a policy of not negotiating with terrorists for a reason: common sense. It seems that Germany has not thought out the consequences.
Germany is not saying "blow us" to the US. They are prostituting themselves to terrorists. Who's looking stupid now?

Posted by: susan at December 22, 2005 12:41 PM (1miWe)

6 ernie,

too much planet Chomsky for you.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at December 22, 2005 01:04 PM (8e/V4)

7 So, lebannon and Iraq are sleeping in the same bed now. We should get them too(again). Lock and load Bush, I sees them bad guys now......

I better check CNN to see if its true

Posted by: JJ at December 22, 2005 01:23 PM (Vr7tm)

8 "Hey Ma! That neighbor's kid - lil' ernie - is in the yard again diggin' up holes! He must have found a way out of their attic again!"

Posted by: hondo at December 22, 2005 02:10 PM (3aakz)

9
Oh, well, maybe it's a good thing. The terrorists will just start kidnapping more Germans and fewer Americans. The downside is that the Germans will be releasing people that will go right back into the fight against the West, which INCLUDES Germany. Europussies don't realise that the islamofascists hate them too.

Posted by: Slice at December 22, 2005 02:14 PM (ZSDaZ)

10 It looks like it's a match between ernie and greg to see who is the bigger moron. Ernie is slightly ahead, but greg is just getting his legs back.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at December 22, 2005 02:38 PM (0yYS2)

11 It sounds as if ernie has been hitting the local library, unfortunately 99% of the info seems to be gushing out of an ear. This signifies some amusing posts in the coming days. I'm just aquiver with anticipation.
The Germans, like the rest of Western Europe have again shown that terrorism pays and pays well.
Oh and ernie, if you read that book "Nazism for Dummies" again, you'll see that the Nazis were not spreading civilisation by force. The idea was the enslavement of the world in service of the master race.......by force if necessary, and back when Europe had some spine, it was necessary. The United States is spreading democracy, and not by force. Iraqis did not rush out to vote under threat of American retribution There's a huge difference therefore, between Nazism and US foreign policy.

Posted by: Graeme at December 22, 2005 02:47 PM (slJ4n)

12 Of course, ernie makes a mountain out of a mole hill. YOU MORON! Can't you see that this will only increase the number of kidnappings now? Are you that stupid? This is not about big, bad, evil America and its insatiable appetite for oil. Shove your conspiracy theories up your ignorant butt and see this simply for what it is. Germany is now negotiating with terrorists. America the horrible is not lurking under the surface on this one man, sorry to disappoint you.

Posted by: Jack's Smirking Revenge at December 22, 2005 03:23 PM (CtVG6)

13 Big Bad America lives in lil' ernie's closet. But when the lights go out lil' ernie ....

Someone should get him one of those Killer Klowns night lights for Christmas ...

Posted by: hondo at December 22, 2005 04:50 PM (3aakz)

14 Clearly the german government decided to follow what the reagan admin did and sell weapons to the kidnappers.

So this is a triumph for the Republican party.Why isn't colonel north out cheering this behaviour ?

Posted by: kb at December 22, 2005 06:56 PM (ZBmhj)

15 Agent Jones opines on the German Cave:

There once was a German named Pieter, who tried to type a message to Dieter.

His keyboard got stuck so he ran out of luck, And thus escaped the "Bahn" from the Rieper.

Posted by: Agent Smith at December 23, 2005 02:25 AM (QiDzI)

16 It appears the saying "ignorance has no limitations" is true. It manifests itself regularly in the comment section here. Poor ernie can't see the difference between "spreading civilization" by way of killing off a large portion of it and "spreading civilization" by espousing the idea that all have a right to live. I feel sorry for li'l ernie. He's too stupid to understand the fundamentals of it.

Posted by: Oyster at December 23, 2005 07:56 AM (YudAC)

17 When I visualize lil' ernie I see, for reasons unknown, "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" - the "lesser" brother - though there it was an act of limited "confidence" skills - lil' ernie is the real thing.

Posted by: hondo at December 23, 2005 08:08 AM (3aakz)

18 He's too stupid to know he's stupid.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at December 23, 2005 08:10 AM (0yYS2)

19 Ernie, what international law are we ignoring? Perhaps those treaties we refrained from signing. As such, those are not binding on us ... according to international law. One reason the USA is reluctant to sign on to all sorts of treaties is that we actually follow them. France signs onto all the treaties it likes because they are not worth the paper they are written on over there, except as gestures of high-mindedness and "sophistication".

Posted by: Honza Prchal at December 23, 2005 07:06 PM (/tB/z)

20 Besides, even we do sign agreements we still make our own rules. ie NAFTA and the lumber ruling with the Canadians.
we like to play the game and change the rules as we go it's better that way...

Posted by: JJ at December 23, 2005 09:46 PM (Vr7tm)

21 The Germans caved in to the Islamists for the same reason they tolerate honor killings in their own country. Basically they are afraid of the radical Muslims who are in their midst.

This was just one more example of appeasement on Germany's slide into Eurabia, nothing more, nor less. It really didn't concern Germany whether American sensibilities were injured or not, as we are not the ones likely to start a burning spree in large German cities, a la France.

The real problem I have with the whole episode is its use by lightweight thinkers like ernie and others in more important places who will use it to bash the US rather than seeing the real significance, which is the caving of Europe to radical Islam. One wonders whether Europe has any fight left in it at all.

Posted by: jesusland joe at December 24, 2005 09:39 AM (rUyw4)

22 oh hwatever. "planet chomsky"? sounds like you listen to too much horowitz jesus land. Anyway, really, your hyper nationalsit ideology is hindering US hegemony, point...fact...and simple. Not a big deal, couldnt care less, but the fact is Germany is telling yOu..."eat shit".

sorry, the truth hurts.

happy kwanza.

ernie

Posted by: ernie at December 24, 2005 06:35 PM (X4Dyg)

23 Aaaaahhhh lil ernie!

Sad! Still can't get any bush for Christmas.

Posted by: hondo at December 25, 2005 12:40 PM (3aakz)

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