Secretary of State Colin Powell has expressed his condolences to the family of Eugene Armstrong, an American civil engineer working in Iraq, where insurgents captured and beheaded him.

"These are murderers. These are terrorists who do not want to see the Iraqi people live in peace and freedom," Powell said following an interview with ABC television September 21. "They have to be dealt with. This is not the time to think that we can walk away or run away from this challenge."

Powell said the new Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi intends to establish a government that preserves and protects human rights and individual liberty.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
(New York, New York)
September 21, 2004

REMARKS

Secretary of State Colin L. Powell After His Interview on ABCs Good Morning America

September 21, 2004
New York, New York

(7:13 a.m. EDT)

SECRETARY POWELL: I'd like to extend my condolences to Mr. Armstrong's family. It is a terrible tragedy. It just shows you the nature of the people that we are dealing with. These are murderers. These are terrorists who do not want to see the Iraqi people live in peace and freedom. They don't want to see their country rebuilt on a democratic base. And they have to be fought. They have to be dealt with. This is not the time to think that we can walk away or run away from this challenge.

Americans know how to beat this challenge and we are joined in this fight not only by many coalition partners, but we are joined in this fight by the new leaders of the Iraqi people. Prime Minister Allawi is here in New York this week. He will speak about the vision that he has for his country, a vision that does not include mass graves, does not include weapons of mass destruction; it includes the protection and preservation of human rights and individual liberty. And so we are facing a challenging insurgency. We have to defeat it, but let's not talk about leaving next year. We must finish the job that we have started and I am confident we will finish the job.

Thank you.