Yahoo! Here's the CBC story which goes into more detail:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/03/23/hostages060323.html
Military operation frees 2 Canadian hostages in Iraq
Last Updated Thu, 23 Mar 2006 08:16:50 EST
CBC News
Two Canadian hostages held in Iraq for nearly four months have been freed in a carefully planned military operation involving British, American and Iraqi forces, said British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw.
Canadians James Loney, 41, and Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32, were freed along with Briton Norman Kember, 74. All three were members of the Chicago-based Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), an international peace activist group.
They were abducted in November in Baghdad with American Tom Fox, who was later killed. His body was found March 10 with gunshot wounds to his head and chest.
Straw said Loney and Sooden required hospital treatment but he provided no details. Kember was reportedly in "reasonable" condition. All three were initially taken to the U.S.-controlled military Green Zone in Baghdad and have since been moved to the British Embassy. They are not expected to make any public statements today.
The Iraqi interior ministry said the operation took place in a rural area between the town of Mishahda, about 30 kilometres north of Baghdad and the suburb of Abu Ghraib, about 20 kilometres from downtown Baghdad.
Loney's brother Ed Loney said he is relieved this nightmare has come to an end, adding the whole family has huge smiles on their faces and are making plans to welcome James home whenever he reaches Canada.
"Elated is an understatement," Loney told CBC News from Vancouver.
Ed Loney said although his brother has lost about 20 pounds, he sounded "fantastic" and told his family he was sorry about putting them through this situation.
"My mom said, 'Don't worry about it, just get home and we'll talk about all that stuff when you get here'," said Ed Loney.
Sooden's brother-in-law spoke from New Zealand, where Sooden was based before being sent to Iraq. The family is "a little bit numb," said Mark Brewer.
"Actually, we're jumping up and down," he laughed.
The co-director of the Christian Peacemaker Teams said he couldn't think of a better reason to get a phone call in the middle of the night.
"Our hearts are filled with joy this morning," said Doug Pritchard during a morning news conference in Toronto. "Our gladness is bittersweet that Tom is not alive to join his colleagues in this celebration."
Pritchard said he believes no gunshots were fired during the rescue operation and that the kidnappers were not present when the men were found.
Members of the CPT in Baghdad are to meet with the three hostages shortly at the embassy, said Maxine Nash, who works with the organization.
Straw said the military operation that led to the release of the hostages occurred after "weeks and weeks" of careful preparation and involved military and civilian personnel, including the RCMP.
"The operation included representatives from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, other agencies from Canada and they did a terrific job as well as the Americans and British staff and those from Iraq," said Straw.
"I'm delighted that now we have a happy ending to this terrible ordeal for Norman Kember, for his family, for the Canadian hostages, and for their families as well," Straw said.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair's office said he was "delighted" by the news and congratulated everyone involved in the rescue.
A group calling itself the Swords of Righteousness Brigades initially claimed responsibility for the hostage-taking.
Their abduction drew criticism from high-profile Muslim groups, including leading Sunni clerics in Iraq and a top Palestinian cleric. The Muslim Association of Britain placed ads in Iraqi newspapers appealing for their release.
The hostages were shown in several videos. In the most recent, dated February 28, Loney, Sooden and Kember were shown without Fox.
American reporter Jill Carroll is still missing in Iraq. She was kidnapped in early January in the Iraqi capital and has since appeared in three video clips on Arab television.
