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Freed Japanese Hostages Face Criticism

No well-wishers were at the airport when three Japanese civilians taken hostage in Iraq returned home safely. As they left the plane, the two volunteer aid workers and freelance photojournalist hung their heads and were silent. It was a bleak homecoming — and it didn’t end there. Noriaki Imai, 18, Nahoko Takato, 34, and photojournalist Soichiro Koriyama, 32, have been accused of rashly ignoring government warnings to stay away from Iraq and blamed for imperiling the Japanese military’s humanitarian mission there. Afterward, the government said it would bill them $6,000 for their flights and other expenses. Full Story