This Ongoing War: A Blog: 14-Apr-11: Gazan jihadists grab Italian journalist, threaten to murder him in name of glorious revolution

Thursday, April 14, 2011

14-Apr-11: Gazan jihadists grab Italian journalist, threaten to murder him in name of glorious revolution

The SKY News article is here

Reports are emerging this evening (Thursday) that "Islamist extremists in Gaza" have kidnapped an Italian journalist they call Vittorio Arriogoni and say they are going to kill him within 30 hours if the Hamas terrorist regime that controls Gaza does not release a number of prisoners. Palestinian Arab prisoners, that is.

SKY News has a picture of a beaten-up face here in a report that connects the kidnapping to what it calls "a Salafist organisation, inspired by al Qaeda". It's a screen grab taken from a video in which, it says, there are demands for the release of "mujahideen" who have been arrested by Hamas and are being held in jails in Gaza and in particular a sheikh who was arrested last week. SKY News says this Italian journalist arrived in Gaza as part of an "aid" convoy in 2008 and he has become famous - in Italy, at least - for what it calls "his passionate defence of Palestinians under Israeli occupation".

An AP wire story this evening quotes one of the founders of the appalling ISM organization saying the man who was kidnapped is one of its activists and that his name should be withheld.

The journalist's name sounds like it might be a mis-spelled version of Vittorio Arrigoni whose anti-Israel writings are all over the web. Our impression is that there are details missing from this story that might emerge in the coming hours and days.

UPDATE Thursday 9:40 pm: Aussie Dave of IsraellyCool has posted some videos of the/a Italian journalist who seems to be the central figure in this. And he quotes this Palestinian Arab newsagency (in Arabic but click to get the English translation) blaming the kidnapping on - whom else? - the Israelis.

UPDATE Thursday 10:40 pm: Honest Reporting points out the irony of

"...Hamas refusing to negotiate a prisoner swap with terrorists – even as they still deny Red Cross access to Gilad Shalit and play mind-games to pressure Israel – is even more so. But irony aside, let’s hope Arrigoni emerges from captivity quickly and safely."

UPDATE Friday 07:00 am: The jihadists have killed him.

2 comments:

prasad said...: I think Palestinian and Israel conflict is a never ending problem. Palestine people should not target Israeli people and Israeli government they should not give support Hamas like terrorist groups. Israel also leave the Palestinian territory and both side have a peace talk in a peaceful manner then only this conflict will end otherwise this problem will continue for a long time and this might be the reason third world war in the future. Only peace talks can change their lives.; Saturday, April 16, 2011
Anonymous said...: Prasad, does Israel occupy any Lebanese territory? Did Israel occupy any Palestinian territory in 1967? Israeli 'occupation' of Palestinian territory only becomes a useful excuse for the Palestinian violence at certain points in history. Israel did not occupy Gaza or the 'West Bank' in 1967, and the Arabs attacked. I fear that Arabs will attack Israel as long as she exists. We've had years of peace talks with no peace resulting. We've had an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza that has allowed Hamas to turn Gaza into a launch pad for rocket attacks.

The occupation is not the problem. The settlements are not the problem. 'The problem' changes to suit the circumstances. Take the second Intifada: Israel responds to the mass murders of Israelis by using force, and the world accuses it of massacres, calls it a rogue state; so Israel builds a wall instead, to keep the bombers out - and suddenly 'the problem' is the 'apartheid wall', checkpoints, the indignity, etc etc. Nothing Israel does satisfies the Palestinians or the world.

Prasad, you may earnestly desire peace and have a heart full of goodwill, but the 'occupation' is not the problem. The bigoted hatred of Israel's existence is the problem, as it always was.

Michael; Wednesday, April 20, 2011

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