German "hostage" returns to Iraq

Remember Susan Osthoff? She's going back to Iraq. If her story has slipped off the hard drive, she was the German archeologist living in Iraq who was kidnapped then later freed, apparently after the German government paid a ransom. They denied it, then part of the denied ransom showed up on Ms. Osthoff's person, which she intially denied knowing about:

Part of a ransom alleged to have been paid by the German government to win Osthoff's freedom was found on her after her release, German magazine Focus reported last month.

She explained that the terrorists, kindly folk they are, simply gave her back the money she had in her purse when they snatched her. And wow, the Germans bought it:

But German newspapers later reported that Osthoff was not suspected by the government of cooperating with her kidnappers, and rather had demanded and been given back part of the $2,668 (1500 pounds) she had been carrying when the gunmen first captured her.

Initially it was thought the Germans had orchestrated a swap, giving up TWA847 hijacker Mohammed Ali Hamadi in return for Osthoff. That seemed far-fetched due to the fact he was a Shi'ite terrorist and she was kidnapped in the Sunni triangle. Hamadi has now fallen off the radar despite strong worded comments by government officials about bringing him to justice in America, and despite a letter to president Bush from the family of Navy diver Robert Stethem, killed and thrown on the tarmac by Hamadi in the 847 hijacking.

This development does suggest Osthoff is not a spy, as some had suspected. If it turns out she is one, throw her up there with the mythical Bond for sheer nerve and guts. But somehow the words collaborator or fool come to mind first.

But save the biggest dunce cap for Germany. They paid, it backfired. Notice the difference in the way we're handling the Jill Carroll situation, with a second deadline approaching this Sunday. Paying ransom is never a long term solution, but apparently some politicians figure it's a worthwhile short-term solution, especially before a close election or while weathering political pecadillos and such.