Then and Now

Despite the military account describing Mr Wood’s rescue as a chance event, conducted under gunfire, the cleric had played a “key role” in his release, Mr Trad said.

 

“What happened was he was held in Ramadi and transported from there to that safe location where he was picked up,” Mr Trad said.

 

“He made it clear (to Australian authorities) that they had reached that certain stage of negotiations and that his release was imminent.”

The “stupid action” of military forces who raided the Iraq house where Douglas Wood was found had risked the lives of two Iraqi hostages, Australia’s Islamic spiritual leader says.

 

Australian Mufti Sheikh Taj Aldin al-Hilali returned to Sydney today from his Middle East mission to try to secure the 63-year-old engineer’s release.

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Sheikh al-Hilali was critical of the military operation in Baghdad and said Mr Wood had been close to being released anyway.

 

He said the raid had endangered the lives of the other two hostages.

 

“The stupid action that was taken last week has exposed the fathers of these families to death,” he told reporters in Arabic, translated by his spokesman Keysar Trad.