At least three hostages have been beheaded: the American businessman Nicholas Berg, a South Korean interpreter and one of two kidnapped Bulgarian truck drivers.

Goh used the services of a Korean interpreter during the hearing, and briefly disrupted the proceedings with an outburst when Klaus began speaking about Goh's mental competence.

A shuttle of hired cars keeps parking in front of one long building, with camera crews and Korean interpreters and journalists pressing the button of one particular elevator.

Mr. Zarqawi's group, Jamaat al-Tawid and Jihad, claimed responsibility for the kidnapping and is believed to be responsible for the beheading earlier this week of a South Korean interpreter, Kim Sun Il.

A South Korean interpreter who dreamed of becoming a Christian missionary in the Arab world was beheaded Tuesday by the insurgents who held him captive after his abduction five days ago near Falluja.

But at least three have been beheaded: an American businessman, Nicholas Berg; a South Korean interpreter; and a Bulgarian truck driver.

In June, One God and Jihad released a video showing the beheading of Kim Sun Il, a South Korean interpreter kidnapped from a truck convoy near the insurgent-controlled city of Falluja.

To the Editor: "Translating Poverty and Pain" (March 1), Suki Kim's essay on working as a Korean interpreter in New York, shed light on the Korean-American community.

Nicholas Berg, a 26-year-old American businessman from Pennsylvania, was decapitated in May, and Kim Sun Il, a South Korean interpreter, was killed last month.

This year, the agency is hoping to have 812 Chinese, 169 Korean and 1,119 Spanish interpreters, reflecting the 2000 census and Voting Rights Acts requirements.