UK troops on way to Baghdad: Japan rejects militants&#39; threat
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BASRA, Oct 27: Hundreds of British soldiers left southern Iraq on a risky mission closer to Baghdad on Wednesday to free up US forces for a possible assault on Fallujah , as Tokyo stood firm after militants threatened to behead a Japanese hostage.
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BAGHDAD, Iraq - Japanese leaders on Sunday insisted they would not cut short their troopsâ deployment in Iraq despite the discovery of the body of a Japanese backpacker killed by Islamic militants.
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Japan will probably keep its troops in Iraq beyond the current Dec. 14 departure date, Hiroyuki Hosoda, Japan&#39;s chief Cabinet secretary, said.
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worked with Japanese forces in Iraq if Tokyo does not withdraw its forces from the country within 48 hours. &quot;We grant the Japanese government 48 hours to withdraw its troops from Iraq or this infidel will meet the same fate as Berg ... and.
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Labour&#39;s former Defence Secretary Lord Healey has opposed the deployment of British troops around Baghdad. He told Sky&#39;s Sunday with Adam Boulton that British forces should leave Iraq as quickly as possible.
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TOKYO - The beheading of a Japanese hostage and the closely fought US presidential election have injected new caution into Tokyoâs deliberations on whether to extend its historic troop dispatch to Iraq.
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Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has announced that Japan will not recall soldiers stationed in Iraq because an Iraqi group has threatened to kill a Japanese hostage.
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TOKYO, Japan -- Japan&#39;s ruling party has approved plans to keep its troops in Iraq beyond the original withdrawal date of December 14 this year.
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Japan said no member of its military  stationed in Iraq is missing, after a group led by al Qaeda  ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi threatened to behead a Japanese  hostage in Iraq if Tokyo did not withdraw its forces from the  country.
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A group led by al Qaeda ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi threatened to behead a Japanese hostage in Iraq if Tokyo did not withdraw its troops, but Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Japan&#39;s contingent would stay put.
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Some 800 British forces, accompanied by US Marines, began making their way toward Baghdad on Wednesday as part of a redeployment ahead of an expected coalition offensive against insurgent strongholds.
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Nearly 800 British forces left their base in southern Iraq on Wednesday, heading north toward Baghdad to replace U.S. troops who are expected to take part in an offensive against insurgent strongholds.
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BAGHDAD - The 48-hour deadline set by a group of Islamic militants for Japan to agree to withdraw its troops from Iraq expired Thursday night, with the group threatening to behead a 24-year-old Japanese hostage if Tokyo ignores its demand.
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A group threatened to execute a Japanese hostage in Iraq unless Japan pulls out its forces, but Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said on Wednesday that the Japanese troops would remain in the country.
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By Michiyo Ishida, Channel NewsAsia&#39;s Japan bureau chief. Japanese troops are in Iraq mainly to help in the country&#39;s reconstruction but the mission is also seen as a signal that Tokyo wants a larger role in world affairs.
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Japan&#39;s prime minister today refused to bend to demands by militants who have taken a Japanese civilian hostage in Iraq and threatened to behead him unless Tokyo withdraws its soldiers.
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British troops are being sent to patrol areas near Baghdad to allow US troops to take &quot;decisive action&quot; against Iraqi insurgents, Britain&#39;s top military officer has said.