Berg worked at Abu Ghraib and had Iraqi relatives by marriage

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=716&e=3&u=/ap/20040512/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_berg

Questions Surround Slain American in Iraq

<snip>During his time in Iraq, he struggled with the Arabic language and worked at night on a tower in Abu Ghraib, a site of repeated attacks on U.S. convoys and the location of the notorious prison where U.S. soldiers abused Iraqi inmates.


His father, Michael Berg, told the AP that Michael's sister, now dead, married an Iraqi man named Mudafer, who became close to Nicholas. In one of the e-mails, Nicholas Berg describes going to the northern city of Mosul, where he introduced himself to Mudafer's brother, identified as Moffak Mustaffa.


"We got along splendidly," Berg wrote. "We spent a few hours and I helped him establish an e-mail account."


Berg notes that "my presence ... made him more concerned (about his own safety and probably mine too) than I've been the entire time I've been here."

more

[goodhue]

1. yes

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/133/world/Questions_surround_young_Ameri:.shtml

Berg was inspecting communications facilities, some of which were destroyed in the war or by looters.

During his time in Iraq, he struggled with the Arabic language and worked at night on a tower in Abu Ghraib, a site of repeated attacks on U.S. convoys and the location of the notorious prison where U.S. soldiers abused Iraqi inmates.

His father, Michael Berg, told the AP that Michael's sister, now dead, married an Iraqi man named Mudafer, who became close to Nicholas. In one of the e-mails, Nicholas Berg describes going to the northern city of Mosul, where he introduced himself to Mudafer's brother, identified as Moffak Mustaffa.

''We got along splendidly,'' Berg wrote. ''We spent a few hours and I helped him establish an e-mail account.''

[ewagner]

2. Am I wrong about this?

Is Abu Ghraib a town? And the "tower" he worked on was a communications tower in Abu Ghraib and not the prison of the same name?

That's my take on this. Is that yours?

at night on a tower in Abu Ghraib, a site of repeated attacks on U.S. convoys and the location of the notorious prison where U.S. soldiers abused Iraqi inmates.

[NNN0LHI]

3. You may be right? I edited the headline to reflect the ambiguity n/t

[Sapphocrat]

6. OIC -- that makes more sense. n/t

[kentuck]

4. Well, it's starting to make a little more sense....

I guess. He did know someone there...in Mosul. Perhaps a case of just being in the wrong place at the wrong time... Sad...:(

[Sapphocrat]

5. And yet...

Monkey Boy stated today: "There is no justification for the brutal execution of Nicholas Berg -- no justification whatsoever."

Granted, there is no justification whatsoever -- in our eyes. But I expect being an American and working at Abu Ghraib in any capacity is more than "justification" in the eyes of some.

I wonder if Berg's killers knew he'd ever worked there? Or if they just grabbed the first American they found, and the coincidence was (for lack of a better word) serendipitous?

Curiouser and curiouser.

[displacedtexan]

7. more info (It just gets weirder and weirder)...

U.S. spokesmen Dan Senor and Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt were quick to offer statements of condolence to his family and to draw attention to the barbarity of his death. Senor also said that "to my knowledge" Berg was not affiliated with any U.S. or coalition organization, nor was he ever in U.S. custody.

snip

In Mosul, however, police told the AP they had no knowledge of the Berg case. Police official Safwan Talal said the only American arrested there in recent months was a woman who was released soon afterward. Since Iraq remains under U.S. military occupation, it seems unlikely that the Iraqi police would have held Berg, or any other American, for such a length of time without at least the tacit approval of U.S. authorities.

snip

Berg told his family that U.S. officials took custody of him soon after his arrest and he was not allowed to make phone calls or contact a lawyer, his father said. Kimmitt said U.S. forces kept tabs on Berg during his confinement to make sure he was being fed and properly treated because "he was an American citizen."

snip

On April 5, the Bergs sued the government in federal court in Philadelphia, contending that their son was being held illegally. In a writ filed April 5 in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, the Bergs said the State Department told them their son "is currently detained in Mosul, Iraq, by the United States military" and that American diplomats "no longer" had "any authority or power to intervene" on his behalf.

more...
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAWRXEX5UD.html

[seabeyond]

8. the two hostages to be beheaded

both jewish. perle and berg. none of the others have had that. the italian was shot wasnt he

[Ruby Romaine]

9. you meant Pearl?

[w13rd0]

10. He was a tech...

...he helped an Iraqi set up an e-mail account...
...though a Bush supporter, he was given to humanitarian efforts...
...he worked on a communication tower at Abu Ghraib...
...he was a tech...
...he was held by the US, but not charged, but now they say they never held him, the Iraqi police did...
...but the Iraqi police said they didn't...
...death squads from Pinochets Chile and South African apartheid regime are employed in Iraq...
...we're currently investigating horrific abuses, the kind someone might kill to cover-up for...
...somehow photos and video got into the hands of the US media...
...his father is anti-war...

So many questions, so few answers.

[Kahuna]

11. Such as sad case. Like so many others he was duped by bushco...

It cost him his life. There are so many others in the same position.

[Tinoire]

12. He took photos/ ??? What to think?

Wish I had seen your thread earlier...

From: "oldtowerguy" <oldtowerguy@y...>
Date: Wed May 12, 2004 12:49 pm
Subject: About Nick Berg


John and group. I copied this message from another board. John, I
believe you know which one. I thought this was a great insight to the
young man and his dedication. It was written by Mark Humphry.

Gary

BEGIN:
Message: 4
Date: Wed, 12 May 2004 12:35:16 -0400
From: "Mark Humphrey" <mark@y...>
Subject: Remembering Nick (was Why was Nick in Iraq?)

The tragic news about Nick Berg's murder hit very close to home, as I
had known him for about two years and we hired him for several
recent projects -- in fact, he installed an auxiliary antenna for WPLY in
February, just before heading back to Iraq. Perhaps I can shed some
light on this situation.

<snip>

Why did he go to Iraq?

He was aware that some towers were damaged last year during bombing
missions, and many more had been looted... copper lines removed,
diagonal members taken out, etc. Few obstruction lighting systems
were functional -- he mentioned an 800 foot tower two miles from an
airport (used by our military) that was totally dark. So he first went over
in December to see if he could help to assist in the reconstruction,
restore Iraq's broadcast services, and repair the serious structural
damage that endangered the lives of their citizens.

I received the following email message from Nick in early January:

>About Iraq-

>I am taking photos - where allowed. It's actually pretty sad - I just
>got off one of two 320 meter monster towers in Abu Gharib (also home
>to the main political prison) which use to support most of Baghdad
>area's VHF and UHF.
>Both have been badly looted, including 4000 feet or more of flexible
>6-1/8" heliax, two full 12X4 panel TV antennas, and even some
>structural members. I was also in the North as I mentioned, but here there
>wasn't as much damage. I'll definitely share some of these pix with
>you and others next time I'm in the area - I'd love to put together a
>little presentation for SBE or PAB in about six monthes after I've
>been on every site and fixed some of them.

He returned to Philadelphia in late January to catch up on some
domestic business -- then in early February, tackled an antenna
replacement job at our aux site, which he had quoted last summer.

<snip>

If you've been following all sides of this story, you may have read
that his parents did not receive much cooperation from OUR Federal
Government when trying to learn his whereabouts, which is very
disturbing. He had reportedly booked a March 30 flight back to New
York, but missed it because he had been detained by our military.
Today's "spin" on the story is that they told him to get out, but I'm
not buying that.

Let's keep his family in our thoughts and prayers. Our industry (and
humanity) has lost a very fine person.

Mark

http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/Tower-pro/message/19463