Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Kenneth Bigley, a Briton taken hostage in Iraq on Sept. 16 with two American colleagues, may be freed ``imminently'' by his captors, the captive's brother, Paul Bigley, said in an interview with Sky News.

Bigley's colleagues, Eugene Armstrong and Jack Hensley, were beheaded last week. Tawhid Wal Jihad, a group led by Abu Musab al- Zarqawi, claimed responsibility for the killings and posted videos of the murders on the Internet.

Paul Bigley told the U.K. television channel that yesterday he received the translated text of a communique, purportedly from his brother's captors, in which the hostage's planned release was mentioned. ``I have reason to believe that this document is authentic,'' Bigley said.

The U.K. Foreign Office has a number of leads, including the statement mentioned by Paul Bigley, and is investigating all of them, said a spokesman who requested anonymity. The spokesman declined to give further details about the communique.

Bigley said that he didn't know when his brother may be released beyond the timeframe of ``imminently'' mentioned in the statement.

The communique, which was posted late yesterday on the alqalah.com Web site said that, while Bigley will be freed soon, other people will be taken hostage and beheaded if foreign troops don't withdraw from Iraq, Agence France-Presse reported, giving no further details.

Zarqawi's group initially demanded that all women prisoners be freed from Iraqi jails in exchange for the lives of the three captives, a demand repeated in the tape showing the decapitation of Armstrong.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 29, 2004 08:42 EDT