BEIJING, May 10 -- The family of an Australian engineer being held hostage in Iraq have offered to make a charitable donation to Iraq. Meanwhile, Australia's top Muslim cleric has set off to Baghdad to try to win his release.

    Iraqi Militants seized the 63-year-old Douglas Wood to pressure a pullout of Australian troops from Iraq within 72 hours starting from Friday.

    Wood's younger brother Malcolm said the family empathised with the struggles of the Iraqi people, and this was the reason why they decided to make a donation.

    He denied that such a donation is a ransom, but he did hope such a gesture would help.

    "We are trying, as you may have observed in recent days, a number of different approaches to assist resolution of this crisis. Our hope is that a charitable donation may be part of what that assistance can be," Malcolm said.

    He said the donation offer was being sent with Australia's most senior Muslim cleric, who earlier on Monday left for Baghdad.

    Wood did not reveal the size of the donation or where exactly it was going.

    Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said the government would do everything it could to help make the cleric's visit successful.

(Source: CRIENGLISH.com)