On November 29, 2005, CPT Hebron contacted EI about the four members of the Christian Peacemaker Teams who were abducted in Iraq on November 26th. The four men were two CPTers and two delegates, one American, one British, and two Canadian. Held by a previously unknown group, the "Sword of Righteousness", the four appeared in a video released by the captors and broadcast on Al-Jazeera. The four kidnapped Christian peace activists were seen together in three subsequent videos aired by Al Jazeera TV in December 2005 and January 2006. The kidnappers of the four Christian peace activists threatened to kill them unless all Iraqi prisoners were released from Iraqi and U.S. prisons. A fourth video aired in March and showed all of the hostages except American Tom Fox.
On March 10, 2006, Fox's was discovered in a Baghdad neighborhood. Fox was in Iraq with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), an organization that calls on Christians to "devote the same discipline and self-sacrifice to nonviolent peacemaking that armies devote to war." Fox had been working in Iraq since 2004, documenting detainee abuse, advocating for the human rights of all Iraqis, accompanying refugees and protesting the occupation.
On March 23, 2006, Fox's three colleagues - Jim Loney, Harmeet Sooden and Norman Kember - were freed in Baghdad after nearly four months in captivity. All reports indicate that the three were freed by a multinational force and that no shots were fired and none of the captors were present at the time of the raid, reportedly led by British troops. Kember, Loney, and Sooden, were found inside a house in western Baghdad with their hands tied. They were taken to the British Embassy inside the fortified "Green Zone."
October 2002: Christian Peacemaker Teams sets up in Iraq six months before the U.S.-led invasion.
Nov. 26, 2005: Canadians Jim Loney, 41, and Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32, and Briton Norman Kember, 74, and American Tom Fox, 54, are kidnapped in Baghdad by the Swords of the Righteous Brigade.
Nov. 29: Christian Peacemaker Teams blames the kidnappings on the U.S. and British invasion and occupation of Iraq. The four hostages are shown on videotape broadcast by the Al-Jazeera news network.
Nov. 30: The influential Association of Muslim Scholars calls for hostages' release.
Dec. 1: Families and friends of hostages plead for their release.
Dec. 2: Al-Jazeera broadcasts a second video in which kidnappers threaten to execute the four hostages unless all Iraqi prisoners in U.S.- and Iraqi-run detention centres are released by Dec. 8. Prime Minister Paul Martin promises all federal government resources to secure the release of hostages. Deadline subsequently extended to Dec. 10.
Jan. 28, 2006: Al-Jazeera broadcasts videotape showing four activists with warning of "last chance" for authorities to release Iraqi prisoners.
March 7: Al-Jazeera broadcasts new video showing three activists apparently calling on their governments to help them. Fox is not seen in the tape.
March 10: Fox's body is found in Baghdad.
March 23: The three remaining hostages are freed by multinational forces in a town north of Baghdad.
Source: Canadian Press
BIOS OF ABDUCTED CPT MEMBERS
Tom Fox (CPT)
Tom Fox, age 54, is from Clearbrook, Virginia and is a dedicated father of two children. On March 10, 2006, the body of Tom Fox was discovered in a Baghdad neighborhood. Fox was in Iraq with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), an organization that calls on Christians to "devote the same discipline and self-sacrifice to nonviolent peacemaking that armies devote to war." Fox had been working in Iraq since 2004, documenting detainee abuse, advocating for the human rights of all Iraqis, accompanying refugees and protesting the occupation.
On November 26th, 2005, Fox and three colleagues - Jim Loney, Harmeet Sooden and Norman Kember - were abducted in Baghdad. Four days later their images appeared on a video broadcast by Al Jazeera. Demands were made and deadlines were set. Two more videos were aired in January 2006, one showing Tom Fox and his British colleague Norman Kember shackled and wearing orange jumpsuits. A fourth video aired in March and showed all of the hostages except Fox. Three days later, Fox was confirmed dead.
For two years, he worked with CPT in partnership with Iraqi human rights organizations to promote peace. Fox was a practicing Quaker for 22 years. While in Iraq, he sought a more complete understanding of Islamic cultural richness and was committed to telling the truth to U.S. citizens about the horrors of war and the effects of U.S. policies and practices ordinary Iraqi civilians and families. Fox was an accomplished musician who played the bass clarinet and the recorder. He loved to cook. He also worked as a professional grocer. Fox devoted much of his time to working with children. He served as an adult leader of youth programs and worked at a Quaker camp for youth. He facilitated young people's participation in opposing war and violence. Fox was a quiet and peaceful man, respectful of everyone, who believed that "there is that of God in every person" which is why work for peace was so important to him.
Norman Kember (CPT)
Norman Kember, age 74, is from London, England. He and his wife of 45 years have two married daughters and a 3-year old grandson. He has been a pacifist all his life beginning with his work in a hospital instead of National Service at age 18. Before his retirement he was a professor teaching medical students at St Bartholemew's Hospital in London. He is well-known as a peace activist, and has been involved in several peace groups. For the past 10 years he has volunteered with a local program providing free food to the homeless. He likes walking, birdwatching, and writing humorous songs and sketches. In his younger days he enjoyed mountaineering.
James Loney (CPT)
James Loney, 41, is a community worker from Toronto, Canada. He has been a member of Christian Peacemaker Teams since August 2000, and is currently the Program Coordinator for CPT Canada. On previous visits to Iraq, his work focused on taking testimonies from families of detainees for CPT's report on detainee abuse, and making recommendations for securing basic legal rights. James was leading the November 2005 delegation in Iraq when he went missing. James is a peace activist, writer, trained mediator, and works actively with two Toronto community conflict resolution services. He has spent many years working to provide housing and support for homeless people. In a personal statement from James to CPT, he writes: "I believe that our actions as a people of peace must be an expression of hope for everyone. My hope in practising non-violence is that I can be a conduit for the transformative power of God's love acting upon me as much as I hope it will act upon others around me."
Harmeet Singh Sooden (CPT)
Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32 is a Canadian electrical engineer. He is studying for a masters degree in English literature in Auckland University in New Zealand to prepare for a teaching career. He enjoys art, is active in squash and worked part time as a local squash coach. His family describes him as peaceful and fun-loving and he is known to be passionate about the plight of the underprivileged around the globe. He works tirelessly in his spare time to educate and help others.
