The Jawa Report:

The deadline made by a terror organization holding American Ronald Schulz hostage has passed. The Islamic Army in Iraq had threatened to murder Ronald Schulz today if the U.S. did not release all prisoners in Iraq.

We pray that the U.S. military will find Schulz and rescue him before it is too late. . . .

The Islamic Army in Iraq has also been implicated in the kidnapping of four Western peace activists. Norman Kember of England, American Thomas Fox, and Canadians James Loney and Harmeet Singh Sooden were taken hostage by an unknown group calling themselves 'The Swords of Righteousness Brigade'. However, that group has released its hostage videos on internet sites affiliated with The Islamic Army in Iraq.

Further, an examination of the document announcing that 'The Swords of Righteousness Brigade' would extend the hostage deadline reveals that the same author also prepared the Ronald Schulz announcement (thanks to Jay 87 and OvO). It is nearly certain, then, that some kind of relationship exists between The Islamic Army in Iraq and 'The Swords of Righteousnes Brigade'.

The Islamic Army in Iraq has known ties to al Qaeda and has worked with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's al Qaeda offshoot in the past. The group has murdered dozens of hostages on video in the past, including Italian journallist and Red Cross worker, Enzo Baldoni.

Video and photographs at the link above.

As I said before, keep the Schulz family of Jamestown in your thoughts.

Update:

It would seem as though Schulz may have been killed.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - An Iraqi insurgent group said Thursday in an Internet posting that it killed a U.S. security consultant it had taken hostage. The claim%u2019s authenticity could not be immediately verified.

The Islamic Army in Iraq said it had killed %u201Cthe American security consultant for the Housing Ministry,%u201D after the United States failed to respond to its demand of the release of Iraqi prisoners.

Thursday%u2019s statement, posted on an Islamic militant Web forum, did not identify the hostage and provided no evidence he had been killed, but said pictures of the slaying would be released later.

"War criminal Bush continues with his arrogance and no one has any value unless they serve his criminal interests, therefore the American security adviser pig at the Housing Ministry has been killed," the statement said.

That certainly sounds like Schulz.

Heartless bastards.

The Jawa Report has more.