AMS statement and Mufti Ikreme Sabri (Ramallah)

A group of influential Sunni clerics called Wednesday for the release of five Westerners taken hostage last week in a wave of kidnappings, saying they should be granted their freedom as a humanitarian gesture. The Association of Muslim Scholars, believed to have contacts with some Sunni insurgent groups, has helped mediate the release of other Western captives in Iraq. The Association of Muslim Scholars said the release of the Christian aid workers would recognize their ``good efforts in helping those in need.'' (The AP article also includes a long statement by AMS calling for the release of the German woman)

In Ramallah, in the West Bank, Mufti Ikrema Sabri, the Palestinians' top Muslim clergyman, also called for their release. ``These aid workers have stood beside (the) Palestinian people and it's our duty now to stand beside them ,'' he said. Palestinians in several towns said they had worked with the activists and asked Sabri to issue the appeal.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5447973,00.html (original report AP article release about 9pm Baghdad time)