2004, while investigating reports that Abu Mousab al-Zarqawi's nascent "al-Qaeda in Iraq" group was openly claiming control of the Haifa Street area of Baghdad, Ware was briefly held at gunpoint by fighters loyal to Zarqawi who had pulled pins from live grenades and forced his car to stop. The men dragged him from the car and stood him beneath one of the banners, intending to film his execution with his own video camera. By threatening them with immediate and violent retaliation, his local guides, including members of the Ba'ath Party, were able to win his release. Ware has stated that, had this happened only a few months later, when Zarqawi's group had grown stronger, he would have been killed. In October 2004, he was named Time magazine's Baghdad Bureau Chief. He was embedded for the September 2005 assault on Tal Afar, and his harrowing video of the battle has been included in a Frontline documentary and a 60 Minutes report. When with CNN, he was partnered with Thomas Evans, who produced for Anderson Cooper. In August 2006, he spent three weeks in Beirut and the Bekaa Valley as part of CNN's team covering the Israeli invasion of Lebanon before returning to Iraq. In October 2007, he covered the quadrennial Rugby World Cup for CNN Sports, reporting from Marseilles and Paris. In February 2008, he covered the parliamentary elections in Pakistan for CNN and hosted Pakistan's Vital Vote. In April 2008, he hosted 30-minute special for CNN, Iraq: Inside the Surge. In August 2008, he covered the South Ossetia War, between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Georgia, reporting at various times from the towns of Tbilisi, Gori, and Poti. Beginning in early 2009, he began covering the Mexican drug cartels, reporting from Juárez and Mexico City. In May 2010, he began a one-year leave of absence from CNN to be treated for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In September 2010, the program Australian Story on the ABC network in Australia ran a two-part special on Ware's career. In April 2011, he was added to the list of contributors to The Daily Beast and also wrote a column for Newsweek. Only the Dead (2015) In February 2011, Ware confirmed that he would not be returning to CNN. He later told an Australian newspaper that he has formed a film company, Penance Films, and has recently finished a documentary about his time