Family says US held man who was beheaded; CIA links video execution to al-Qaida; Julian Borger in Washington; Friday May 14, 2004; The Guardian

… an email released by the family raises serious doubts about denials this week from the US occupation authorities that Berg was ever in American custody. It was sent to the family by a US diplomat on April 1, when the family had lost contact with their son for several days.

"I have confirmed that your son, Nick, is being detained by the US military in Mosul. He is safe. He was picked up approximately one week ago. We will try to obtain additional information regarding his detention and a contact person you can communicate with directly," said the email from a consular official identified as Beth Payne. The email was obtained by the Associated Press.

The family argues that Berg's fate was sealed by his detention, which delayed his departure until April, when Iraq was in chaos, and it was dangerous to travel. Berg's father, Michael, also demanded that the Bush administration answer claims from the killers that they had offered to trade his life for Iraqi prisoners.

"If that is true... I think the people of the United States of America need to know what the fate of their sons and daughters might be in the hands of the Bush administration," he said. The US authorities vigorously denied holding Berg, who had travelled to Iraq in the hope of finding contract work putting up communications antennae. Dan Senor, a spokesman for the coalition provisional authority in Baghdad, said FBI officials had visited Berg in an Iraqi cell in Mosul, but insisted the American had never been in US custody.

However, the Iraqi police chief in Mosul told CNN his forces had detained Berg, but released him within hours to the US military.
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