Please offer prayers for those being held hostage.

[CBHagman]

Naturally, we pray for the safety of all people, especially those in war zones, but today we have some more names to add to the list: German archaeologist Susanne Osthoff, abducted after delivering medical supplies to Iraqis, and four members of the Christian Peacemaker Teams, Tom Fox, Norman Kember, James Loney, and Harmeet Singh Sooden.

Please pray for them and for their families and friends.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-iraq.html

The story itself is general coverage of Bush's most recent speech, plus events in Iraq. Here's the pertinent part:

"Two Canadians, a Briton and an American, all working for a Christian humanitarian aid group, were snatched in Baghdad on Saturday. A video of them being held hostage by a group calling itself the 'Swords of Truth' was shown on Arab TV on Tuesday.

"The group accused the men of being 'spies working for the occupying forces' under the guise of Christian aid work. Al Jazeera did not say if their lives were threatened.

"A separate video was shown on German TV of a German archaeologist and her driver who went missing in Iraq on Friday.

"In that video, the group threatened to kill Susanne Osthoff and her driver unless Berlin stops all cooperation with the U.S.-backed Iraqi government."

[pelagius]

1. Bring your servants home safely, oh Lord, and grant that they may...

...be beacon of peace even in captivity.

[CBHagman]

2. Iraqi Abductors Threaten 4 Peace Activists. (Update)

This is the first real news I've had on the four hostages since December. It is truly frightening. May they be returned safely. God, help us!

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/story.jsp?idq=/ff/story/0001/20060128/0847596584.htm&ewp=ewp_news_1205iraq_hostages&floc=NW_1-T

"The kidnappers of four Christian peace activists threatened to kill them unless all Iraqi prisoners are released from Iraqi and U.S. prisons, according to a new tape broadcast Saturday.

"Al-Jazeera TV aired a tape dated Jan. 21 showing the four workers - two Canadians, an American and a Briton - from the Chicago-based Christian Peacemaker Teams, who disappeared Nov. 26. The previously unknown Swords of Righteous Bridges claimed responsibility for kidnapping them.

"The news reader said the group issued a statement with the tape saying it was the 'last chance' for U.S. and Iraqi authorities to 'release all Iraqi prisoners in return of freeing the hostages, otherwise their fate will be death.'

"No deadline was set."

[CBHagman]

3. First tape in quite some time of Christian Peacemaker Team.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4781462.stm

Unfortunately, there's no sign of Tom Fox. However, I am relieved that there is evidence that the other three men are still alive.

[elshiva]

4. May they return safely home. Thank you God that they are still alive.

What about Jill Carroll?

[CBHagman]

5. It grieves me to report this.

They've taken the life of Tom Fox, age 54, a Quaker peace activist based in Virginia. It was the lead story in my Washington Post this morning.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060311/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/hostage_killed

[oxbow]

6. Prayer thread for the family of Tom Fox here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x635580

Thank you all in advance