There is no question that Iraq’s economy, now unfettered from the tyrannical authority of Saddam Hussein’s regime, is booming as small businesses and other enterprises take off in cities across Iraq, in spite of the insurgency.

For the most part these are small businesses with only a few employees and while private enterprise may be the path to financial independence for many Iraqis, there’s no guarantee that any of these Iraqis will become multi-millionaires. Any Iraqi looking to make fast money, however, should consider kidnapping, especially of Germans. For the umpteenth time, the Germans have paid a ransom to insurgent kidnappers in order to secure the release of two German hostages (Thomas Nitzschke and Rene Braeunlich of Leipzig). This isn’t the first time the Germans of succumbed to this armed extortion and given their track record, it won’t be the last.

“Regarding the payment of ransom, I don't know, but I assume it was a large amount of money," said Iraq's ambassador to Germany, Alaa Al-Hashimy.

While officially, the German government denies paying ransom to hostage takers, numerous unnamed political sources confirm that sums in excess of $5 million have been paid by the German government in the past.

Unfortunately, the German government is not alone in the practice of paying ransom. The Italian government has also succumbed to such pressure. If ever there were two nations that know full well the consequences of appeasing an aggressor it is Germany and Italy.

Their actions serve only to make Iraq even more dangerous for foreigners, especially Germans and Italians. With each payout, the terrorists are emboldened and encouraged to continue their hostage taking, knowing with absolute certainty that these governments will quickly give in to their monetary demands.

Not only does the paying of ransoms reward terrorists for their criminal acts, but it also gives them the ability to carry out renewed attacks. It could be argued that these governments are complicit in arming and equipping these Islamic radicals and thus the blood of countless men, women and children stain the hands of the German and Italian governments.
http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2006-05-03T090124Z_01_L03576678_RTRUKOC_0_US-GERMANY-IRAQ-HOSTAGES.xml