French MP says bid to free Iraq hostages failed under US fire

DAMASCUS, Oct 1 (AFP) - A French MP said here Friday that his unofficial bid to secure the release of two French journalists held in Iraq had failed after US troops opened fire on the convoy attempting to bring them out, killing six of their escorts.
Didier Julia, an MP for President Jacques Chirac's ruling party, said that his assistant Philippe Brett had persuaded the kidnapppers to release reporters Georges Malbrunot and Christian Chesnot and they had left in two separate convoys from their place of detention, both of which had come under US fire.
"They set up 20 roadblocks and ... six members of the team protecting the journalists were killed," said Julia, whose mission enjoys no backing from the French foreign ministry.
The MP said Brett had learnt of the failure of the mission as soon as he arrived separately at the Syrian border and headed straight back to the journalists' captors.
"The three Frenchmen are still in Iraq in the hands of the resistance," he said.
"The Americans increased their bombardment and deployed two divisions to fire upon all terrorists who pass."
Julia, 70, is vice president of the Iraqi-French Friendship Group. The two journalists have been held hostage by the Islamic Amry of Iraq since August 20.