Muslim cleric heads for Iraq in hostage mission

The family of an Australian engineer being held hostage in Iraq offered a “donation” to the Iraqi people today, as Australia’s top Muslim cleric left for Baghdad in a last-ditch effort to win his release.

Militants who seized Douglas Wood, 63, an Australian citizen and a resident of Alamo, California, released a videotape that was broadcast on Friday demanding that Australia start pulling its troops out of Iraq within 72 hours, although they didn’t say what would happen if the demand was not met.