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UK's Blair condemns Berg beheading as 'barbaric'
British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Wednesday condemned the beheading of an American hostage in Iraq as barbaric and unjustified. "This was a truly barbaric act and there is no justification for this kind of act in a civilised world," Blair's official spokesman said of the death of Nick Berg, killed in supposed reprisal for abuses of Iraqi prisoners by US troops.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Wednesday condemned the beheading of an American hostage in Iraq as barbaric and unjustified.
"This was a truly barbaric act and there is no justification for this kind of act in a civilised world," Blair's official spokesman said of the death of Nick Berg, killed in supposed reprisal for abuses of Iraqi prisoners by US troops.
Berg, a 26-year-old civilian, may have been killed by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, according to a Web site video purportedly showing Berg's last moments.
Blair's spokesman also said the prime minister rejected any attempts to divide London and Washington over the growing prisoner abuse scandal.
"We are not going to allow people to try and drive divisions between us and our allies. Our goal is the same...our goal is to create an Iraq in which Iraqis govern themselves," he said.
"It is obvious that there is a desire -- reflected in the media -- to try and drive divisions between us and the US and that is not going to be allowed to happen," the spokesman added.
He said Blair believes British troops "have shown remarkable restraint, remarkable discipline" in Iraq and that any allegations of abuse against UK soldiers are investigated.
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw on Tuesday vehemently condemned the treatment of Iraqi prisoners in the US-led run Abu Ghraib jail near Baghdad.
