American Civilian Gets Treatment at Military Base in Germany
By KATHARINE A. SCHMIDT, AP

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (May 3) - Former Thomas Hamill, who escaped his Iraqi captors after three weeks in captivity, arrived Monday in Germany for a reunion with his wife and treatment at a U.S. military hospital, a spokeswoman said.

Hamill of Macon, Miss., pried open the doors of the house where he was being held on Sunday and ran a half-mile to a U.S. military convoy passing by near the town of Balad, north of Baghdad.

The 43-year-old civilian contractor, who suffered a gunshot wound, was to be reunited with his wife, Kellie, at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Landstuhl spokeswoman Marie Shaw said. It was not clear when she would arrive.

After Hamill broke out of the house, he removed his shirt, waved it and began shouting in English at the soldiers as he ran toward them, members of the patrol said at a briefing in Baghdad. At first, they said they thought he might be an Iraqi farmer.

Hamill Made His Own Break
''He was yelling, 'I'm an American, I'm an American, I'm an American POW,''' said 1st Lt. Joe Merrill.

''From a distance, it was obvious he was unarmed, so we did not have our weapons trained on him,'' Merrill said.

He added that Hamill did not say anything about being tortured.

Capt. George Rodriguez said aiding in Hamill's rescue ''actually felt kind of good - something that I think everybody wants to do.''

A truck driver for a Halliburton Corp. subsidiary, Hamill was captured April 9 by gunmen who blasted the supply convoy he was driving on the outskirts of Baghdad. Hamill's captors had threatened to kill him unless the United States lifted its siege of the city of Fallujah.

Hamill's escape came two days after Marines started pulling back from Fallujah under a new agreement ending their assault on the insurgent stronghold.

A C-141 transport plane brought him to the Ramstein Air Base in rural western Germany, then he was taken by bus to the medical center for a checkup, Shaw said.

His wife was flying in from Mississippi to meet with Hamill at the hospital, Shaw said. It was not clear how long he would stay in Germany before returning home.

The U.S. military has said Hamill is in overall good health, but a gunshot wound to his left arm might be infected. Shaw said Landstuhl staff were standing by to treat him.

Hamill was among seven American contractors kidnapped in the April 9 attack. The bodies of four have been found and two are missing.

A U.S. soldier kidnapped in the same convoy attack as Hamill, Pfc. Keith M. Maupin, was seen in separate video footage. The remains of a second military man missing in the attack, Sgt. Elmer Krause, were identified April 23.

Hamill's abduction came amid a flare-up of kidnappings of foreigners during the intense violence that began in early April. Up to 40 people from a wide range of nationalities were abducted, though most were later freed. One hostage, an Italian, was executed by his captors, who filmed the slaying and sent a video to Arab television stations.

Hamill's family exulted at the news of his escape. His father, Leo, said he fell asleep Saturday night while watching a television newscast and woke Sunday to a bulletin reporting his son's escape.

''I knew when I saw him on TV, I knew it was him,'' the teary-eyed father said. ''I hoped they would return him safe.''

His wife said she got a call at about 5:50 a.m. telling her that her husband was free. He later called home, ''the best wake-up call I've ever had,'' she said.