Friend of Sooden in appeal on Arab TV

A close friend of Harmeet Sooden, one of four Westerners kidnapped in Iraq last November, is appealing on al-Jazeera television for the release of the Aucklander and his fellow hostages.

Donna Mulhearn, a former "human shield" and aid worker in Iraq, has recorded an appeal to the kidnappers of the four members of the Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT), who are still being held after five weeks.

The appeal was due to screen in primetime either last night or today.

Ms Mulhearn, who was briefly held captive by insurgents in Fallujah last year, worked alongside CPT members during her time as a humanitarian aid worker in Baghdad.

She is a close friend of Mr Sooden, a 32-year-old Auckland University student.

The others held are Canadian James Loney, American Tom Fox and Norman Kember, of Britain.

Ms Mulhearn was joined on the broadcast by Keysar Trad, who represented the Islamic Friendship Association of Australia.

"We want those who have Harmeet, Jim, Tom and Norman to know that they are friends of Iraq and came to help Iraqis," Ms Mulhearn said.

"We know them well. We have seen them at work; we have witnessed their commitment to Iraq and their desire for the occupation to end."

Mr Trad said the CPT in Baghdad did outstanding work on the issue of the human rights of Iraqi detainees and their families.

"CPT has been drawing attention to the abuse of Iraqis held in prison without charge for a long time and has helped the media and other organisations become aware of the situation," he said.

"They have helped so many Iraqi families through the pain of having loved ones go missing. They have been able to find information about their whereabouts and help re-unite families."

Ms Mulhearn said three of the four hostages had also been active in Palestine.

"I was with Harmeet Sooden in Palestine this time last year. He is a peaceful man committed to helping those who are suffering under occupation," she said.

"Harmeet worked very hard during his time in Palestine to help the Palestinian people in any way he could. He learned a lot about the suffering of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation and that's one reason he decided to go to Iraq, to learn more about the life of Iraqis under US occupation."