Jihad Releases Anderson’s Photo, Repeats Demands

The clandestine Islamic Jihad group today released a photograph of hostage Terry Anderson and said the two Americans it is holding will not be released until “all our demands are met.”

In a statement delivered to a Western news agency in Muslim West Beirut and accompanied by a photo showing a bearded Anderson, the pro-Iranian group said those demands include the release of its fighters from “foreign jails.”

The close-up black-and-white photograph shows a tired but apparently healthy Anderson. The Associated Press correspondent was abducted on March 16, 1985. He is the longest-held American hostage in Lebanon.

The other American believed held by Islamic Jihad is Thomas Sutherland, who was kidnaped June 9, 1985.

There are 16 foreigners, including nine Americans, believed held hostage in Lebanon by extremists loyal to Iran.

“The recent changes on the regional and international scenes will not lead to the release of the hostages in Lebanon,” the statement said.

It apparently referred to mounting speculation that Iran’s acceptance of an end to the 8-year-old war with Iraq, and Tehran’s willingness to restore ties with the West, could signal an impending release of hostages held in Lebanon.

“We are the only party which decides the fate of the hostages on the level of releasing, executing or keeping them,” the group said in its one-page statement typed in Arabic.

“No hostage will be released until all our demands are met,” it said.