Videotape showing beheading of British hostage Kenneth Bigley

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - A videotape shows British hostage Kenneth Bigley being beheaded by his captors in Iraq, a witness who saw the tape said Friday. The witness, who asked not to be identified by name, said the tape shows six hooded, armed men standing behind the kneeling Bigley, whom the witness recognized from two previous tapes released by the kidnappers. One of the six then spoke in Arabic for about a minute. Afterward, the speaker took a knife from his belt and severed Bigley's head as three others held him down, the witness said. The tape ends with the killer holding up the severed head. British officials in Baghdad said they had no confirmation that Bigley was dead, and American military authorities said no body had been found. Bigley, 62, was abducted along with two Americans from their home in Baghdad's upscale Mansour neighbourhood by members of Tawhid and Jihad, Iraq's most feared insurgent group led by Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The group had demanded the release of all female prisoners held by occupation forces in Iraq. The two Americans - Eugene Armstrong, 52, and Jack Hensley, 48 - were decapitated earlier. Two videos have surfaced showing Bigley pleading with British Prime Minister Tony Blair to save his life by meeting his kidnapper's demands. On Wednesday, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said his government was ready to listen to the kidnappers but would not enter into negotiations with them for the hostage's release.

Canadian Navy launches two formal inquiries into Chicoutimi fatal fire

FASLANE, Scotland - The Canadian navy has begun assembling two formal boards of inquiry in Scotland that will look into the deadly fire aboard the HMCS Chicoutimi that killed one submariner, left two others in hospital and crippled the vessel's operating systems just days after Canada took possession of the sub from Britain. A handful of the officers who will conduct the inquiries descended upon this Royal Navy base near Glasgow on Friday. Their arrival came as a British tug began slowly towing the Chicoutimi and its crew through the rough seas of the North Atlantic and back to the very base where it started its ill-fated journey to Canada a week ago. One investigation will focus on why Lieut. Chris Saunders, a healthy and active 32-year-old, seemed more susceptible than others to the smoke that engulfed the submarine's control centre on Tuesday, military sources told The Canadian Press. "It's really baffling," said one source close to the medical investigation. The avid mountain biker and father of two died Wednesday after he was airlifted from the submarine, left powerless and adrift by the fire, to an Irish hospital. A second more technical and time-consuming inquiry is already under way. That one is probing the cause of the fire that left nine crew members, including Saunders, suffering from smoke inhalation. What is puzzling to navy investigators, said the sources, is the fact that so many of the crew suffered smoke inhalation, when their training dictates, in a fire, they're to don breathing gear before doing anything else. "When someone yells: 'Fire! Fire! Fire!' you're not supposed to think," said a senior officer who didn't want to be named. "You just get that gear on right away. Did that happen? Was there something wrong with the breathing apparatus? These are questions we need answered." The inquiry into the cause of the fire won't make a great deal of headway until early next week when the battered sub is expected to arrive. Tuesday's blaze seemed to have been contained to the captain's quarters and an electrical equipment space on deck below. It would have sent smoke billowing through the nearby control room until crew members were able to douce the flames with fire extinguishers. The heart-pounding moments were complicated by a second fire in the ship's oxygen generator. Navy physicians are troubled by how quickly Saunders' condition worsened once he was evacuated from the heaving deck of the submarine, the sources said. Some answers might possibly come this weekend following an autopsy on Saunders' body by a Canadian Forces doctor. Two toxicology experts from Ontario will also take part in the investigation to determine if the 14-year career navy officer inhaled anything toxic beyond the smoke, the sources said. The navy hopes to have its findings assembled by the end of next week in order to provide answers to Saunders' heartbroken widow and family. The sailor's remains are expected to be flown Sunday to Halifax, where there will be a full military funeral, the navy said Friday. Boards of inquiry are quasi-legal proceedings, similar to coroner's inquests in the civilian world. If a board finds fault or a systemic problem, it has the power to recommend changes to the leadership of the Forces. While confirming there will be two separate investigations, a navy spokeswoman in Halifax wouldn't provide any further details. "Although they are related, the fire and the death of Lieut. Saunders are separate incidents" that require investigation, said Jeri Grychowski in the Maritime Forces Atlantic office. Two sailors - Master Seaman Archibald MacMaster, 41, Petty Officer Second Class Denis Lafleur, also 41 - remain in hospital in Sligo, Ireland, suffering from smoke inhalation. The fire, which damaged key electrical cables, forced the crew to use satellite phones to communicate after their radio equipment proved useless. The navy has since delivered a half-dozen cellphones to the crew so they could call worried loved ones in Canada. The Chicoutimi was on its maiden voyage to join the Canadian navy in Halifax when the tragedy struck. It is one of four used diesel-electric submarines Canada has leased from the Royal Navy. The boat, like its sister ships, has been plagued with a series of problems, ranging from a cracked pressure hull to leaks. -CP