Brazil appealing for abuction assistance
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is appealing to Middle Eastern nations for help in locating a Brazilian engineer abducted in northern Iraq.
Joao Jose Vasconcellos Jr. - working for the Odebrecht Industrial Group - was reportedly captured last week in northern Iraq and is being held for ransom by insurgents working with the Iraqi militant Army of Ansar al Sunna.
Several civilian contractors have been abducted by Iraqi religious and rebel groups - some have been released unharmed while others have been beating and killed or even decapitated.
Dubbed by one news source as a "crusade" of sorts, Lula has turned to regional leaders like Syrian President Bashar Assad for advice or assistance on how to approach the hostage situation.
According to Brazil's Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, Brazil's search for help in handling the Vasoncelos' capture has extended beyond Syria to other regional leaders in an effort to rally support for his effort to bring the Brazilian engineer home safely.
Amorim told reporters Tuesday that Lula had received positive feedback from Assad following his request for help.
"The Syrian president reacted very positively saying he would do everything that was possible," said Amorim, who added the request was a matter of "humanity and solidarity" between the allied nations.
The Brazilian government is also reportedly tapping what diplomatic resources it has in the region, namely its mission and their ambassadors.
Special Brazilian liaison to the Middle East, Afonso Celso Ouro Preto, is expected to arrive in the Jordanian capital, Amman, on Thursday to head up Brazil's efforts on the ground to retrieve the abducted engineer.
Brazil and particularly President Lula have very little experience dealing with terrorist situations and practically none when dealing with Middle Eastern radical groups.
Lula has traveled to the Middle East in an effort to bolster trade relations with a number of countries meeting with leaders like Assad, Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak and even Libyan leader Col. Mommar Kaddafi.
Critics here in Brazil were quick to accuse the foreign ministry and the president of fumbling the situation initially and not acting quickly enough to come up with a plan of action.
In response to criticism, Amorim noted that Lula was making every diplomatic effort at Brazil's disposal, even soliciting advice from Spanish Prime Minister Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero about the abduction during the minister's visit to Brazil on Monday.
Before the abduction Brazil had successfully avoided any real involvement in the War on Terror and particularly the U.S.-led war in Iraq, the latter of which Lula openly opposed.
Leading Brazilian newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo reported Wednesday in its online edition that some Iraqi religious leaders are appealing for the release of the Brazilian of Vasconcellos due to Brazil's lack of involvement in the conflict there.
Brazilian firms like Odebrecht however have entered the contracting fray joining civilian companies from around the world in the ongoing rebuilding process in Iraq. Among them are several Brazilian manufacturers of bullet-proof cars, which in recent months have been meeting the growing market in Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries for armored, protective civilian transport.
The Brazilian government issues warnings for its citizens traveling to Iraq pointing out the extreme risks such travel poses but does not dissuade them from going.
Meanwhile, British-based Arab newspaper Asharq al Awsat sent Brazilian media outlet O Globo a memo saying an appeal for the engineer's release from Brazilian soccer stars would go a long way with his captors.
According to the editor of the Aab paper, the majority of the militants in Iraq are young and fans of Brazilian soccer players like Ronaldo and Ronaldinho and of course legendary soccer great Pele.
Ronaldo, who plays for Spain's Real Madrid club, reportedly recorded an appeal for the engineer's release that is set to be shown on Arab T.V. stations on Thursday.
(From United Press INternational, Jan 27, 2005)
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