Three freed Japanese hostages were to leave Iraq yesterday as the government in Tokyo breathed a sigh of relief, but a controversy was brewing after two said they still wanted to work in the war-torn country.
The release of Noriaki Imai, 18, freelance journalist Soichiro Koriyama, 32, and aid worker Nahoko Takato, 34, was a boon for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who had faced his biggest political challenge to date after militants threatened to kill them unless he pulled Japanese troops out of Iraq.
But the fate of two other missing Japanese remained unclear and debate over Tokyo's military mission raged on.
Koizumi, a staunch supporter of the US in Iraq, vowed again to keep Japanese troops in Iraq, but admitted he had faced a painful decision while the three hostages were in danger.
"We could not give in to the demands of the captors. But we had to rescue the three," he told reporters. "It was a difficult job."
TV news showed the trio looking tired but in good health in a meeting with a Muslim cleric who helped arrange their release.
They were to fly to Dubai yesterday and were likely to return to Japan at the weekend. But at least two expressed an intention to carry on their work in Iraq.
"I will continue," said a tearful Takato, when asked whether she planned to keep on with her aid work. "They did some awful things, but I cannot bring myself to hate the Iraqi people."
Koriyama's mother, Kimiko, said her son told her shortly after being freed that he wanted to stay in Iraq to take photos, Kyodo news agency said.
The three had already come under criticism in some quarters for traveling to Iraq despite the obvious dangers and on Friday, Koizumi reacted angrily when asked about their desire to return.
"A great number of people in the government, forgetting food and sleep, worked for their rescue," a visibly irritated Koizumi said. "They should realize this."
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda was equally annoyed.
"They should decide after they come back to Japan, cool off and think seriously," he said in reply to a question about the apparent desire of Takato and Koriyama to work in Iraq again.
The hostages' release means Koizumi and his ruling camp have avoided a worst-case scenario ahead of parliamentary by-elections later this month and a poll for the Upper House in July.
But there were no clues to the fate of two missing Japanese civilians, freelance journalist Jumpei Yasuda, 30, and Nobutaka Watanabe, 36, a former member of the Japanese military with ties to a civic group. The two were reported missing on Thursday.
"This is not a resounding success, it is not a resounding failure. It doesn't resound at all," said Steven Reed, a political science professor at Chuo University. "The worst-case scenario didn't happen, but there are still two more people."
Worries about security in Samawa, where Japan's troops are based, have also fueled fresh calls for the troops to withdraw, although defence minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Friday the situation was not deteriorating.
The government has repeatedly advised civilians, including journalists, to leave the country and 10 Japanese journalists were evacuated from Samawa on Thursday.
In line with the constitution, the law enabling the mission in Samawa limits troops' activities to "non-combat zones," a concept that critics have charged is meaningless in Iraq.
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