Codes by Fab
Nick Berg
Legend :
1) « Nick Berg » « death »
2) « The prisoner »
3) “Beheaded. His son”
4) “In May”
5) “8” (his dead body was found on May 8)
6) “13 May” (On May 13, it was revealed that Nick Berg had been investigated during the U. S. government's investigation of Zacarias Moussaoui)
Legend :
1) « Look ! They will capture Nick Berg »
2) “A Jew”
3) “In Irak”
4) “Beheaded”
Legend :
1) “They have illustrated (reversed). Nick Berg »
2) “A Jew“
3) „He will be killed“
4) “Sword”
5) “died”
6) “You will discover the man”
7) “They will capture”
8)“Irak”
9)“Video”
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Berg, October 2003
Nicholas Evan Berg (1978 - April or May 2004), an American businessman seeking telecommunications work in Iraq during the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, was captured and beheaded, apparently by Islamist militants possibly connected to Al-Qaida, in May 2004. The decapitation got worldwide attention since it had been filmed and released from an Malaysian homepage by the Islamic organisation al-Ansars. His killing was said to have been carried out to avenge abuses of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers at Abu Ghraib prison. The act was condemned by many Muslim leaders as contrary to Islamic law and harmful to their cause.
There is controversy concerning the circumstances of his death. For discussion of this aspect of the case, see Nick Berg conspiracy theories.
Berg, aged 26 at the time of his death, was a native of West Chester, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia, where he owned his own company, Prometheus Methods Tower Service. He inspected and rebuilt communication antennas, and had previously visited Kenya, Ghana, and Uganda on similar projects.
Berg graduated from West Chester Henderson High School in 1996 and attended four universities: Cornell, Drexel, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Oklahoma, although he never completed his college degree. He once traveled to Ghana to help a village, by among other things teaching villagers how to make bricks. He returned in an emaciated state because he gave away most of his food and clothes.
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Berg, unlike most of his family, was a supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and of Bush administration policy. He traveled to Iraq in the hope of helping to repair its damaged infrastructure. He first arrived in Iraq on December 21, 2003, and made arrangements to secure contract work for his company. He also went to the northern city of Mosul, visiting an Iraqi man whose brother had been married to Berg's late aunt. Leaving on February 1, he returned to Iraq on March 14, 2004, only to find that the work he was promised was unavailable. Throughout his time in Iraq, he maintained frequent contact with his family in the United States by telephone and e-mail.
Berg had intended to return to the United States on March 30, 2004, but he was detained in Mosul on March 24 by Iraqi police at a checkpoint. His family claims he was turned over to U.S. officials and held for 13 days without access to legal counsel. FBI agents visited his parents to confirm his identity on March 31, but he was not immediately released. After his parents filed suit in federal court in Philadelphia on April 5, claiming that he was being held illegally, he was released from custody. He said that he had not been mistreated during his confinement. The U.S. maintains that at no time was Berg in coalition custody, but rather that he was held by Iraqi forces. The Mosul police deny they ever arrested Berg. According to the Associated Press, Berg was released from custody on April 6 and advised by U.S. officials to take a flight out of Iraq, with their assistance. Berg is said to have refused this offer and traveled to Baghdad, where he stayed at the Al Fanar Hotel. His family last heard from him on April 9. Berg had his last contact with U.S. officials on April 10 and did not return again to his hotel after that date.
Berg's family became concerned after not hearing from him for several days. Although a U.S. State Department investigator looked into Berg's disappearance, official government inquiries produced no leads. Berg's family, frustrated with what they say was a lack of action by the U.S. government, also hired a private investigator and contacted both their Congressional delegation and the Red Cross in search of information.
Nick Berg, in orange, seated, shortly before his decapitation by the five men standing over him.
Berg's body was found decapitated on May 8, 2004 on a Baghdad overpass by a U.S. military patrol. Berg's family was informed of his death on May 10. Military sources stated publicly at that time that Berg's body showed "signs of trauma", but did not disclose that he had been decapitated.
On May 11, 2004, the website of the militant Islamist group Muntada al-Ansar broadcast a video with the opening title of "Abu Musa'b al-Zarqawi slaughters an American," which shows Berg being decapitated. Both al-Zarqawi and Muntada al-Ansar are associated with the Al-Qaida movement. The video is about five minutes and thirty-two seconds long.
Berg is seen in the video wearing an orange jumpsuit. He identified himself: "My name is Nick Berg, my father's name is Michael, my mother's name is Susan. I have a brother and sister, David and Sarah. I live in West Chester, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia."
Surrounded by five men wearing ski masks and head scarves, after reading his statement, Berg was decapitated by a number of blows with a knife. On the video, a scream can be heard as the men around him shout "Allahu Akbar" (a common Arabic expression meaning "God is greatest!"). The men in the video also stated that Berg's killing was in direct retaliation for the abuse of prisoners by U.S. troops at Abu Ghraib prison.
On May 13, news outlets quoted a CIA source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, that a voice analysis of the tape has led the agency to conclude that it is the masked man who reads the statement and carries out the killing is "with high probability" al-Zarqawi.
During the video, the man reading the statement threatens further deaths: "We tell you that the dignity of the Muslim men and women in Abu Ghraib and others is not redeemed except by blood and souls. You will not receive anything from us but coffins after coffins ... slaughtered in this way." The video further threatens U.S. President George W. Bush and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.
The video bears some similarities to the videotape showing the murder and decapitation of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan in 2002. Like Pearl, Berg was Jewish, although it is uncertain whether his captors were aware of that.
Warning : Very graphic photo
Image of veiled person holding severed head
From 00:00:08 to 00:00:22, Berg introduces himself. Then a pronouncement is read by a masked man standing between four other masked men. At 00:04:30 in the video, one of the men attacks Berg with a knife; the men surround him; very quickly, screams can be heard as Berg is held by the men and beheaded. At 00:05:20, the head is presented to the camera.
WARNING : This video contains graphic violence which may be offensive and/or disturbing to some viewers.
In the Muslim world, the killing of Berg was strongly condemned. Scholars at Al-Azhar University in Cairo issued a declaration of condemnation (http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2004-05/12/article08.shtml), as did numerous Muslim groups in the West including CAIR. Shiite Islamist group Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas denounced the murder; Hezbollah issued a statement calling it a "horrible act that does an immense wrong to Islam and Muslims by a group which falsely pretends to follow the precepts of the religion of pardon".
Iraqi conservative and fundamentalist religious leaders also denounced the killing. Muthanna al-Dhari, of the Board of Muslim Clergy, said the act "does disservice to our religion and our cause. Even if he was a military personnel he should be treated as a prisoner who, according to Shari'ah, must not be killed." Iyaad Samarrai of the Islamic Party commented "This is absolutely wrong. Islam does prohibit the killing or the maltreatment of prisoners." [5] (http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2004-05/12/article03.shtml)
Others see Berg's slaying as a reminder of why the United States is waging a War on Terror. [6] (http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/editorial/20645.htm) White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan commented, regarding the incident: "It shows the true nature of the enemies of freedom. They have no regard for the lives of innocent men, women and children. We will pursue those who are responsible and bring them to justice."
Conspiracy theories are forming suggesting U.S. complicity in the death. For further details, see Nick Berg conspiracy theories.
Berg's family blamed the U.S. government and policies that led to his arrest and detainment in April, for creating the circumstances that led to Nick's death. Michael Berg stated that if his son hadn't been detained for so long, he might have been able to leave the country before the violence worsened. [2] His father reportedly stated: "I think a lot of people are fed up with the lack of civil rights this thing has caused. I don't think this administration is committed to democracy." The FBI claims that Berg specifically refused government assistance in leaving Iraq. On May 14, Michael Berg attacked the Bush administration's foreign policy, blaming the American actions in Iraq for his son's death.
The elder Berg said he has been a member of the anti-war activist group ANSWER (Act Now to Stop the War and End Racism) since participating in a rally in Washington, D.C., in March 2003. "I think stopping the war and ending racism are extremely important things that this world has to do right now. I am proud to be a member of ANSWER and I plan to be at the march on June 5. I know it is considered a radical group," [7] (http://www.timesherald.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11649649&BRD=1672&PAG=461&dept_id=33380&rfi=6)
On May 13, it was revealed that Nick Berg had been investigated during the U. S. government's investigation of Zacarias Moussaoui. Berg's email address had been used by Moussaoui prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks. According to Berg's father, Nick Berg had a chance encounter with Moussaoui on a bus in Norman, Oklahoma, and Moussaoui had asked Berg to borrow his laptop computer to send an email.
On May 18, citing "Iraq Sources", Sky News reported that four people had been arrested for the murder.
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