Group threatens to kill American journalist

CAIRO, Egypt -- An Arab television channel aired a silent 20-second videotape Tuesday night of hostage American reporter Jill Carroll and said an accompanying message gave the United States 72 hours to free female prisoners in Iraq or the journalist would be killed.\nThe tape showed the 28-year-old reporter sitting in front of a white background and speaking, but her voice could not be heard. On the tape, Carroll is pale and appears tired, and her long straight brown hair is parted in the middle and pulled back from her face.\nAl-Jazeera TV would not tell The Associated Press how it received the tape, but issued its own statement calling for Carroll's release. An Al-Jazeera producer said no militant group's name was attached to the message that the station received Tuesday.\nCarroll was a freelance reporter for The Christian Science Monitor, and the newspaper released a statement from her family pleading with her captors to set her free.\n"Jill is an innocent journalist and we respectfully ask that you please show her mercy and allow her to return home to her mother, sister and family," the statement said. "Jill is a friend and sister to many Iraqis and has been dedicated to bringing the truth of the Iraq war to the world. We appeal for the speedy and safe return of our beloved daughter and sister."\nThe State Department responded to the videotape on Al-Jazeera with a statement saying U.S. officials were doing everything possible to win Carroll's freedom.\n"We continue to make every effort we can, working with Iraqis and others, to see Miss Carroll is returned safe and sound," spokesman Sean McCormack said.\nCarroll was kidnapped Jan. 7 in one of Baghdad's most dangerous neighborhoods. Gunmen ambushed her car and killed her translator shortly after she left the offices of a Sunni Arab politician.\nThe Boston-based Christian Science Monitor said Saturday that it continued "to pursue every possible avenue" to win her release.\nThe U.S. military raided a prominent Sunni mosque a day after Carroll was kidnapped, sparking a demonstration by hundreds of worshippers. A U.S. military official said the raid was a necessary immediate response to the kidnapping based on a tip provided by an Iraqi citizen.\nInsurgents in Iraq have kidnapped more than 240 foreigners and killed at least 39 of them.\nCarroll, who speaks some Arabic and wore a head covering while moving around Iraq, has been described by her editor as an aggressive reporter but not a reckless one.