On May 12th in Al Taqa, Iraq, a United States troop patrol was attacked by Iraqi insurgents. During the attack, five United States soldiers went missing. Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for kidnapping these soldiers and has told the United States to stop looking for them. The soldiers are from the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y. The soldiers who have been abducted are: Sgt. Anthony J. Schober, 23, of Reno, Nevada, Spc. Alex R. Jimenez, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, of Torrance, California, and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, 19, of Waterford, Michigan. The have been classified as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown. DUSTWUN.

It should come as no surprise that the United States has not stopped search and recovery efforts for these men. The US military is offering rewards up to $200,000 for information related to the location of our soldiers. Over 50,000 leaflets have been dropped on the area where the troops were taken telling local Iraqis of the reward and asking for information. But we are still waiting for news. Five families are praying and hoping for the best but fearing the worst.

Much has been made of the treatment of Iraqi prisoners in recent months. Whether it is a scandal at a US military prison in Iraq or the on going saga of Gitmo, our news is peppered with stories of the treatment of Iraqi prisoners. The Red Cross is notified if prisoners are not given hot meals, or if they run out of shampoo. Our treatment of captured Iraqi insurgents is examined under the microscope of public scrutiny. And there is no hesitation on the part of our media or certain segments of the American public to cry out against the smallest perception of abuse. So, I ask, where is our outrage that five our young men have been taken captive? Say what you will about Gitmo, we don’t publicly behead our prisoners.

There are five families here in the United States waiting for news. They only know that their loved ones are in the hands of the enemy. An enemy that will most likely torture and kill these men and send the world a video tape of their cruelties. Five young men who volunteered to serve this country are in the hands of terrorists. Instead of talking about funding the war or setting benchmarks for our withdrawal, our politicians, reporters and public should be focused only on getting these men back. Our troops went to Iraq to fight for us and they asked for nothing, but they deserve nothing less than knowing that this country will fight for them.