Hostage 'home in days' – but UK officials expect a body

Published on Sunday 3 January 2010 21:38

THE body of a Scottish security guard taken hostage in Iraq is expected to be returned home "within days", the Iraqi government said yesterday.

&#149 Alan McMenemy, pictured at home with his then-newborn son

Although a spokesman for the administration said he "hopes" Alan McMenemy is alive and that he expects him to be handed over to British officials "soon", he later voiced fears the security guard is dead.

The Foreign Office yesterday reiterated its long-standing belief that the 34-year-old father-of-two has been killed, and called for the immediate release of his body.

Despite last week's dramatic release of IT consultant Peter Moore, there is no indication that Mr McMenemy is alive. He was one of four security guards captured in Iraq in May 2007 along with Mr Moore. Three of the contractors have been killed and their bodies returned to Britain last year.

Other than a video and a photograph released soon after his abduction, there has been no indication of Mr McMenemy's where- abouts or whether he is still alive. But the Iraqi spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, said his government was doing all it could to secure Mr McMenemy's release.

"We hope McMenemy is still alive," he said. "The Iraqi government is seeking his release and his handover. That will be soon, God willing. This is part of the release process. All must be handed over to the British embassy. And that is what will happen in the coming days."

However, Mr al-Dabbagh later said he expected Mr McMenemy's body to be handed over in order to "close the file" on the longest hostage crisis involving British nationals since the abduction of Terry Waite.

Last July, the Foreign Office informed the family of Mr McMenemy, originally from Dumbarton, that it was "very likely" he was dead. A spokeswoman said yesterday it had no information to suggest otherwise. She added: "Our position is unchanged. We've believed for some time Alan has been killed. His family has been told about this."

A former paratrooper who was employed by security firm GardaWorld at the time of the kidnapping, Mr McMenemy has two children – Erin, 15, and four– year-old Luke – with his wife Roseleen, 33. Mrs McMenemy said last night she did not want to make any comment regarding the latest developments.

It has been suggested that the release of Mr Moore came after Qais al-Khazaali, leader of the Righteous League group responsible for the abductions, was recently transferred from US to Iraqi custody. The Foreign Office denied any deal was done, saying the US transferred Khazaali into Iraqi custody under the terms of a bilateral agreement.

Mr McMenemy's father, Dennis, said at the weekend that he believes his son is dead, and blamed the government for its handling of the crisis.

"In the back of my mind I know it's going to be a body that is returned," he said. "I'm not happy with the British government's role at all, because they didn't do enough. If Alan is dead, the British government will have blood on its hands. The way this has been handled is a scandal and I don't know if we will ever get to the bottom of what has gone on. Some kind of deal has been done and we haven't been told, as usual."

However, Canon Andrew White, a clergyman known as the Vicar of Baghdad, who negotiated with the kidnappers, suggested yesterday that Mr McMenemy may still be alive. His claims were backed by former Iraqi MP Saad Jaber, who said Mr McMenemy was being used for further leverage by the kidnappers in negotiations over Khazaali's release from custody.

He said: "It seems to be the case that Alan is being held – he is not dead and they are awaiting other developments before they release him. It is not 100 per cent, but this seems to be the situation. I think he is alive because otherwise we would have seen his corpse. I think the conditions for his release will be related (by the kidnappers]."

Asked about the Foreign Office's position that Mr McMenemy was dead, Mr Jaber added: "With the greatest respect for the British government, they have got it wrong every step of the way."

Since 2004, more than 200 foreigners and thousands of Iraqis have been taken hostage in Iraq, with dozens from abroad killed. Many remain missing with no clue as to their whereabouts.

CATCHING UP

FREED hostage Peter Moore, below, last night said he was looking forward to getting to know his family again following his release.

The 36-year-old computer expert from Lincoln, who was kidnapped in Iraq in May 2007, landed at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on Friday evening.

Mr Moore is expected to start a period of counselling and medical care.

In a statement released through the Foreign Office, Mr Moore appealed for space and time with his family.

He said: "I am obviously delighted to have returned to the UK and to have been reunited with my family.

"I am looking forward to spending the coming days and weeks catching up on all the things I've missed over the past two and a half years."

Mr Moore's family said they were thrilled to have him back safely.

Asking the media for space, his designated next-of-kin – stepfather Fran Sweeney and Fran's wife Pauline – said: "We would like to have time with Peter on our own."

Earlier, a Foreign Office spokesman said the former hostage would be "easing back into life", and that no fixed plan for his return to normality and the debriefing process had been agreed.

Mr Moore, who was taken hostage along with his four British bodyguards while working in Baghdad for a US firm, was released on 30 December.

During his period of captivity, three of the bodyguards were killed.