The aid group whose four members were abducted at gunpoint in Baghdad on Saturday blames U.S. and British aggression in Iraq for the hostage-taking.

In a statement released Tuesday, Christian Peacemakers Teams said it was outraged that the four pacifists, including a pair of Canadians, are now suffering for a war they didn't create.

"We are angry because what has happened to our teammates is the result of the actions of the U.S. and U.K. governments due to the illegal attack on Iraq and the continuing occupation and oppression of its people," the Toronto- and Chicago-based organization wrote in the statement posted online.

Earlier in the day, CPT confirmed that a video aired on Arab television does indeed show its four members who were abducted over the weekend.

"We were disturbed by seeing the video and believe that repeated showing of it will endanger the lives of our friends," the group wrote in its statement.

CPT has identified the men as:

• James Loney, 41. He is a community worker from Toronto, an advocate for the homeless and the leader of the team in Baghdad.
• Former McGill University student Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32. His hometown isn't immediately known.
• Briton Norman Kember, 74, a "lifelong pacifist" from London England.
• American Tom Fox, a 54-year-old Quaker from Clearbrook, Va. with two years' experience working with CPT.

Responding to the broadcast of the hostage video on al-Jazeera television Tuesday, Prime Minister Paul Martin told reporters at a hastily-convened press conference that he has requested the "full resources" of the federal government be committed to the return of the two Canadians.

"These people are in that country for humanitarian reasons. They are there to help Iraqi citizens," Martin said in French.

Only hours earlier, al-Jazeera aired footage it said had been provided by a previously unknown group calling itself the Swords of Righteousness Brigade. A graphic of two crossed, black swords and the name of the group written in red Arabic script appear in the corner of the screen, as does a date stamp indicating it was made on Sunday.

In the video, members of the group claim the hostages -- seen sitting on the ground in front of a white wall -- are spies working undercover as Christian peace activists.

But in an interview with the Canadian Press, CPT spokesperson Rob Holmes "absolutely" denied the hostages were in Iraq to evangelize. Instead, the group insists its members are in Iraq working to protect civilians' human rights there.

Al-Jazeera said it could not verify any of the information on the tape.

A difficult decision

CPT only came forward as the group involved hours earlier on Tuesday.

"In our ongoing consultations with our team in Iraq, it was felt that the time had come to confirm that we are indeed the organization," spokesperson Robin Buyers said.

"It's been a very difficult decision."

The group was expected to provide a media briefing on the hostage-taking at a news conference Tuesday morning, but cancelled the event without explanation.

"We felt that we should take that advice and not go public," said Buyers. "But since we were outed, as it were ... we felt that we should confirm that indeed we are the organization and these are our people."

Buyers said she did not know the conditions of the hostages and did not say whether other group members in Iraq have been in contact with the hostage-takers.

As it remains unclear whether the aid workers were snatched by petty thieves or military insurgents, officials have been reluctant to disclose too many details about the abduction.

Ottawa's commitment

At a hastily convened press briefing in Ottawa late Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Paul Martin said there was no more urgent priority for government than the safe return of the Canadians taken hostage in Iraq.

Besides reaching out to the families of the abductees, Martin said he has instructed the Privy Council to commit the government's "full resources" to the effort.

"I can assure Canadians that there is no more urgent priority than the safe return of our citizens," Martin said, adding that he was "reaching out" to the families of the hostages.

"I have instructed the minister of foreign affairs and the clerk of the Privy Council to make certain that the full resources of the Government of Canada are made available to this end."

But terrorism expert Eric Margolis said the fate of the Canadians unfortunately largely rests in the hands of their captors.

"To my knowledge, hostages that have been released have either been done because of a tip-off, or U.S. forces have just stumbled across them. There's not much the Canadian government can do."

He continued: "If it's a criminal gang, it's better, because these criminal abductors will eventually contact the authorities, whoever they may be ... and then ask for money. So there's some chance of getting them out."

Former soldier Scott Taylor, the editor-in-chief of Esprit de Corps agrees, saying there is speculation that the abductors are "some freelance criminal elements that are trying to make a buck out of this."

"There's no demand at the moment on the table that can't be met ... so that's probably a good sign," Taylor said, appearing on CTV's Canada AM.

"But that means that there is ground there ...to negotiate perhaps a ransom with these kidnappers and that's where they get this grey area between what constitutes a kidnapper who is simply an opportunist in a lawless environment and a terrorist who is out to make some sort of political gain in that country."

Christian Peacemakers Team has been in Iraq since October, 2002, before the invasion by the U.S.-led coalition. The organization does not advocate the use of force to save its members' lives, should they be kidnapped or taken hostage.

Despite their charitable intentions, Margolis said these Christian missionaries are particular targets because, "in the Muslim world, they are generally regarded as agents of Western imperialism or spies ... and at best as dangerous troublemakers who are trying to upset the social balance and the customs of the country."

A "Statement of Conviction" released by the Peacemakers branch in Iraq says that team members "are aware of the many risks both Iraqis and internationals currently face," and affirmed that the risks did not outweigh their purpose in remaining.

In the statement, the group expresses the hope that "in loving both friends and enemies and by intervening non-violently to aid those who are systematically oppressed, we can contribute in some small way to transforming this volatile situation."

German woman missing in Iraq

Photos also surfaced on Tuesday of another westerner kidnapped in Iraq.

Germany's ARD television reported that pictures of German national Susanne Osthoff were taken from a video in which her captors demanded that Germany stop any dealings with Iraq's government.

The photos show the blindfolded Osthoff being led away by armed captors. Osthoff, who her mother revealed is an archeologist working for a German aid organization, has been missing along with her driver since Friday. "According to current information, we have to assume it is a kidnapping,'' German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin.

Six Iranian pilgrims, meanwhile, were abducted by gunmen north of Baghdad on Tuesday morning. The pilgrims were grabbed near Balad, 80 km north of Baghdad, but it wasn't clear if the six were going to or coming from Samarra -- the central city that houses a shrine to two Shiite saints.