Margaret Appeals to Blair to Save Her Life - 2004-10-22

Kidnapped British aid worker Margaret Hassan has made a tearful appeal to British Prime Minister Tony Blair to withdraw his country's troops from Iraq and save her life.

Ms. Hassan is the country director of CARE International and a naturalized Iraqi citizen. In a video aired on al-Jazeera television on Friday, she implored Mr. Blair not to redeploy British troops to Baghdad, as his government has promised the Americans it will do.

No kidnappers were shown in the video, and no group has claimed responsibility for her abduction Tuesday in Baghdad.

In Dublin, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern made an appeal aired by al-Jazeera. He called the Irish-born Ms. Hassan's kidnapping a cruel and shocking act and called on her captors to release her.