THANKS FOR THE HELP...

Where ya been? And might you add murder and mutilation to the list?

An anti-kidnapping fatwa issued by Muslim clerics failed to prevent 11 Russian civilians from being abducted Monday in Iraq, and efforts to broker a full cease-fire in Fallujah were reportedly making slow progress.

Seven Chinese men were freed by their captors Monday, but the fate of some 20 other kidnapped foreign civilians, including the Russians, remains uncertain...

Meanwhile, Mohsen Abdel Hamid, a member of the Iraqi Governing Council, said other hostages had been released this weekend after the Committee of Muslim Clerics issued a religious edict, or fatwa, against kidnapping.

"Islamic clerics and parties and all the wise people of Iraq have strongly denounced the act of taking hostages, and they issued a fatwa banning this act," Hamid said.

"And yesterday night, we made contacts with some people at these places, and we hope that the rest of the hostages would be released today, God willing, as we all believe that it is not in the interests of the Iraqi people and does not reflect their morals," he said.