U.S. forces shoot just-freed Italian hostage, kill guard
ROME - Joy turned to horror in Italy on Friday when an Italian journalist who had been held hostage in Iraq was released, only to be shot by U.S. military forces at a checkpoint in Baghdad.
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| Journalist Giuliana Sgrena underwent shoulder surgery in Baghdad Friday. |
Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena suffered a shrapnel wound to her shoulder when an American armoured car fired on her vehicle, while an Italian intelligence officer accompanying her was killed.
Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, has asked the American ambassador to explain the incident.
In Washington, the Pentagon confirmed that a shooting occurred as the Italian woman was being brought to an American base near Baghdad's airport, but gave no other details.
Sgrena, a 56-year-old reporter for the communist daily newspaper Il Manifesto had been held captive in Iraq since Feb. 4.
Thousands of demonstrators marched through downtown Rome last month demanding that Italy pull its troops out of Iraq, after a video was released of a tearful Sgrena warning that she would be killed if the country didn't withdraw.
Shortly after the video was released, the Italian senate voted to extend the country's 3,000-troop mission in Iraq to June.
3 comments:
I saw this in the news yesterday and just couldn't believe what I was hearing! It's absolutely infuriating all round.
they will probably get away without having to explain anything. i think it's insane.
I'm glad she's speaking out.
See article above.
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