Friday, June 18, 2004
The kidnappers said they'd kill the hostage unless terrorists are released.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- With helicopters flying overhead, thousands of Saudi police searched for American hostage Paul M. Johnson Jr. today as a 72-hour deadline loomed for the kingdom to release Al-Qaida prisoners or see him killed.
Police went through several Riyadh neighborhoods from Thursday night through this morning, but authorities gave no indication they were any closer to Johnson, an Lockheed Martin employee who was kidnapped Saturday by a group calling itself Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. The organization is believed to be headed by Abdulaziz Issa Abdul-Mohsin al-Moqrin, the top Al-Qaida figure in Saudi Arabia.
In Johnson's hometown of Eagleswood Township, N.J., relatives held a vigil Thursday night to pray for his safe return.
The kidnappers released a videotape of Johnson on Tuesday night saying they would kill him unless the Saudi government released all militants in its prisons within 72 hours. The Saudis have rejected the demand.
It is not known exactly when the deadline expires as the time of the videotape's release to an Islamic Web site was not clear. But it is presumed the deadline runs out this evening Saudi time or this afternoon eastern U.S. time.
Here's the problem
People living in the districts, which lie in western and southern Riyadh, suggested that the kidnappers enjoy popular support, partly because of U.S. policy in Iraq and its perceived backing for Israel.
"How can we inform on our brothers when we see all these pictures coming from Abu Ghraib and Rafah," Muklas Nawaf, a resident of Dhahar al-Budaih, said as he ate meat grilled on a spit at a restaurant called Jihad, Arabic for holy war.
He was referring to the pictures of Iraqis abused by U.S. soldiers at the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad and Israeli military incursions and killings in the Gaza refugee camp of Rafah.
"This is not a little skirmish. It is a war," Nawaf said.
A man who was shopping in Sweidi with his family said today he saw little prospect of Johnson's life being spared.
"These [kidnappers] are holy warriors, heroes, who never waver, even if they will fail," Mizahen al-Etbi told the AP. "All Saudis hate Americans, not only these heroes."
But the preacher of Riyadh's Imam Sultana Mosque implored the kidnappers to release Johnson in a column published in Al-Riyadh newspaper today.
"O, youth of the nation who have trodden the wrong path, come back to the fold of the community of Islam. Avoid this sedition and be obedient to the ruler of the Muslims," Sheik Mohammed bin Saad al-Saeed wrote.
Wife's appeal
Johnson's Thai wife, Thanom, appealed for her husband's release in an interview broadcast today on the Saudi-owned satellite TV channel Al-Arabiya.
"When I see his picture in TV, I fall down," she said, fighting back tears. "When I hear the name Paul Johnson, I cry a lot. He is my only family here."
At one stage in the interview, she stopped talking, looked down with creased brow, and fought to contain her tears.
A senior Saudi official in the United States said Thursday night that U.S. and Saudi officials have had few promising leads in their search for Johnson.
The Saudi official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the probe, said there had been no communications from the kidnappers except for the video and statement on the Web site.
The FBI has sent a team of about 20 specialists in hostage rescue, hostage negotiations, profiling and other specialties who were working directly with Saudi officials, the official said.
More than 15,000 Saudi officers have been deployed in the search of Riyadh, going door-to-door in some neighborhoods. More than 1,200 Saudi homes had been searched as of Thursday night.
Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.