Ridiculously calling him a traitor to Islam and a representative of an ally "to Jews and Christians", al-Qaeda threatened to punish the “apostate” Egyptian diplomat Ihab Al-Sherif. The website associated with the terrorist group that carried the threat to kill Al-Sherif earlier posted pictures of ID Cards and other belongings of the Egyptian envoy in support of Al Qaeda’s claims.
Although, the veracity of this threat could not be ascertained, the last week has seen an increasing number of attacks on Muslim envoys.
Al Sherif, a 51 year old and experienced diplomat serving in Iraq, was due to become ambassador shortly. His kidnap occurred after he left his house alone to supposedly buy a newspaper late last week. On Sunday, his vehicle was found with no indication of his whereabouts, until the al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the kidnap. Officials fear that Al-Sherif was targeted due to his imminent promotion as the first Arab ambassador in Iraq after Saddam Hussein’s ousting, in an effort to deter other Arab countries from establishing diplomatic ties with the US backed Al-Jaafari government. Earlier this week there were attempts to kidnap two other Muslim diplomats.
Even as terrorists fight the US led forces in Iraq with increased violence, the attacks targeting diplomats is rising. The recent incidents of firing on the convoys of Pakistani Ambassador and that of Bahrain’s chargé d'affaires indicate that even Arab diplomats are not safe in Iraq. While Pakistan immediately withdrew its ambassador to Jordan, Bahrain chargé d'affaires is temporarily to leave Iraq after being promoted. Meanwhile, Al Jaafri and his Shiite-led interim government are keen on retaining international ties has requested foreign countries to “stand beside” and “bolster the democratic process” by continuing to carry on their diplomatic and political work in Iraq.
Adam Hobson, from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, said that when the elected Iraqi government was putting all efforts to create a democratic and prosperous Iraq, it was essential that the international community “show support for the Iraqis” by maintaining diplomatic presence. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian loyal to Osama bin Laden, leads the al-Qaeda in Iraq and is responsible for the kidnaps and killing of many foreigners. His group is known to behead victims and post the gory pictures of their executions on the Internet as propaganda. Jordan itself, which is "determined" to send an ambassador to Iraq, may now have reasons to rethink given Al Sharif’s plight.
While al-Qaeda tries to undo US efforts to encourage over a dozen diplomatic missions of the Arab world in Baghdad, their efforts to isolate the present Iraqi government diplomatically may not succeed. These missions, however are working with miniscule staff and in the absence of full ambassadors, owing to security fears and the hesitancy to be seen as not condoning Iraq’s U.S. military presence.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry in Cairo, said they were "in continuous contact" with the Iraqi government "and all other forces of the Iraqi society" to try to negotiate Al-Sherif's release. A Sunni Arab Member of Parliament and US critic, urged al-Qaeda to refrain from enacting the threat, as Al-Sherif and other Arab diplomats could serve to convince their governments to promote human rights in Iraq. However, the hardline Sunni clerical association pinned the blame on the US for pushing for diplomatic representation too soon.
