Italy - U.S. Relations Strained by Shooting of Agent, Hostage

[Nbadan]

The shooting was the worst diplomatic incident between Italy and the United States since 1998, when a U.S. Marines jet flying recklessly low and fast cut a ski lift cable, killing 20 people.

<snip>

The agent had helped free Sgrena a month after she had been kidnapped and held hostage. Sgrena returned to Rome on Saturday. Calipari's coffin will follow.

"The hardest moment was when I saw the person who had saved me die in my arms," Sgrena's long-time companion quoted her as saying on her flight back to Rome.

Such poignant words are fueling national rage.

Berlusconi, whom the opposition accuses of taking orders from Washington, put on a brave face but leading newspaper Corriere della Sera cited political sources as saying he was furious.

Yahoo News

The agent who was killed had a wife and two kids. W took a whole 5 minutes out of his day yesterday to call the widow and 'express his concern', a whole 5 minutes. This whole incident is a metaphor for the entire Iraq War.



Rosa Maria Calipari, widow of Italian Police officer Nicola Calipari, center , leaves her house in Rome, Saturday, March 5, 2005. Calipari was killed in Iraq (news - web sites) by fire coming from an US armoured vehicle while he was escorting in a car Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena to Baghdad airport after her liberation. (AP Photo/Angelo

[Nbadan]

As you can well imagine, scenarios about what actually happened differed...

The US Army claimed the Italians' vehicle had been seen as a threat because it was travelling at speed and failed to stop at the checkpoint despite warning shots being fired by the soldiers. A State Department official in Washington said the Italians had failed to inform the military of Sgrena's release.

Italian reconstruction of the incident is significantly different. Sgrena told colleagues the vehicle was not travelling fast and had already passed several checkpoints on its way to the airport. The Americans shone a flashlight at the car and then fired between 300 and 400 bullets at if from an armoured vehicle. Rather than calling immediately for assistance for the wounded Italians, the soldiers' first move was to confiscate their weapons and mobile phones and they were prevented from resuming contact with Rome for more than an hour.

The Observer

When Sgrena was kidnapped on February 4 she was writing an article on refugees from Fallujah seeking shelter at a Baghdad mosque after US forces bombed their former Sunni rebel stronghold adding fire to the speculation that U.S. troops continue to target journalists.

[Clandestino]

italy hadn't notified the u.s. about their plans... they failed to stop at a checkpoint... and she would have no ing idea about how many bullets hit her car.. have you ever heard a automatic gun fire???

and the safety of the american troops is first... you just had a car fail to stop when ordered to so..of course, you are going to secure the area FIRST!

dan, you're honestly posting dumber views every day!

[smackdaddy11]

The commie reporter is really exaggerating the story to benefit her anti-war stance.

300-400 Rounds? She wouldn't be giving any interviews if this was remotely true.

She would be a spaghetti strainer.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

You're a ing ' Dan.

300-400 rounds with a .50 caliber and there wouldn't be a car left, much less anyone to tell a grossly exaggerated anti-war propaganda story about it.

And now you're bagging on Bush for taking five minutes out of his day to call this commie who was too stupid to tell her driver to slow down so they didn't get shot to .

I'm surprised you're not ing about Bush not taking the time out of his day to call the families of our war victims.

[Nbadan]

More information is creeping in on this incredible story...

However, according to the daily Corriere della Sera, the Italian intelligence officer who drove the car and who survived the attack insisted they were travelling at just 40 to 50 kilometres an hour (25 to 30 mph).

He was quoted as saying: "All of a sudden, a searchlight went on. Immediately afterwards, the shots began. The fire lasted for at least 10 seconds."

The team that fetched Sgrena had been in direct contact by telephone with the prime minister's office in Rome, where Mr Berlusconi, senior intelligence officers and the editor of Sgrena's newspaper were all celebrating her release with champagne. Corriere della Sera said that, after screaming at the Americans to stop, the intelligence officer called up again. "The Americans have shot at us," he shouted. "Nicola is dead. I have a machine gun pointing at me."

<snip>

Italian prosecutors are working on the assumption they are investigating a murder.

Guardian

[Nbadan]

Also, Sgrena's piece today describing what she personally witnessed..

My truth (La mia verità)

Giuliana Sgrena
Translated by Eva Milan, ZabrinskyPoint


March 6, 2005 (from Il Manifesto) — I am still in the darkness. Last Friday was the most dramatic day of my life since I was abducted.

I had just spoken with my abductors, who for days kept telling me I would be released. So I was living in wait. They said things that I would understand only later. They talked of transfer related problems. I had learned to understand which way the wind blew from the at ude of my two "sentinels," the two fellows who watched over me every day—especially one of them, who attended to my requests, was incredibly bold. In the attempt to understand what was going on, I provocatively asked him if he was happy because I would go away or because I would stay. I was surprised and happy when, for the first time, he told me, "I only know you will go, but I don't know when."

<snip>

They came back: "We'll escort you, but don't give signals of your presence, otherwise the Americans might intervene." That was not what wanted to hear. It was the happiest and also the most dangerous moment. If we ran into someone, meaning American troops, there would be an exchange of fire, and my captors were ready and they would have responded. I had to have my eyes covered. I was already getting used to a temporary blindness.

<snip>

Then they got out of the car. I stayed in that condition of immobility and blindness. My eyes were stuffed with cotton, and covered by sunglasses. I was motionless. I thought . . . what do I do? Should I start counting the passing seconds to another condition, the one of freedom? I had just started counting when I heard a friendly voice: "Giuliana, Giuliana, this is Nicola, don't worry, I've talked to Gabriele Polo, don't worry, you're free."

<snip>

The driver started shouting we were Italians, "We are Italians! We are Italians . . ." Nicola Calipari dove on top of me to protect me and immediately, and I mean immediately, I felt his last breath as he died on me. I must have felt physical pain, I didn't know why. But I had a sudden thought: I recalled my abductors' words. They said they were deeply committed to releasing me, but that I had to be careful because "the Americans don't want you to return." Back then, as soon as they had said that, I had judged their words to be meaningless and ideological. In that moment such words risked to take the taste of the most bitter truth away. I can't tell the rest yet.

Link

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

the Italian intelligence officer who drove the car

Yeah, that guy's gonna be objective about how fast the car was going.

[Useruser666]

I wish Dan would jump out at a few local cops and yell SURPRISE!!! a few times and see what happens.

[smackdaddy11]

NBADumbass taking the word of a communist over the word of our soldiers.


Dan, I'm really interested in Castros opinion on the subject. Use your speed dial and get a quote. If he is busy just call your homie Chavez.

[Clandestino]

and this is trying to make the ABDUCTORS sound like good people! calling them sentinels!!! stfu!

[Clandestino]

oh, one more thing.. who cares how fast the vehicle was moving....5 mph or 50mph.. they were told to STOP!!! they didn't... then they were made to stop.

[Useruser666]

I don't see what point your trying to make Dan. Are you suggesting the US is having troops fire on journalists on purpose? I mean how is is this any wrose than a FF incident?

[GoldToe]

Well I'm not going to boycott any of that delicious Italian food.

[Clandestino]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Monday rejected an Italian journalist's suggestion that she was targeted by U.S. troops in Iraq (news - web sites) in a shooting in which she was wounded and an Italian secret service agent was killed.

"I think it's absurd to make any such suggestion that our men and women in uniform deliberately targeted innocent civilians. That's just absurd," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

The journalist, Giuliana Sgrena, who writes for the communist daily Il Manifesto, had suggested she and the Italian secret service agent, Nicola Calipari, were targeted because the United States opposes Italy's practice of negotiating with hostage takers.

McClellan said the road to the Baghdad airport where the incident took place "is one of the most dangerous roads in Iraq," a place where suicide bombings and various other attacks have taken place.

"It is a dangerous road and it is a combat zone that our coalition forces are in, and oftentimes they have to make split-second decisions to protect their own security and we regret this incident, and we are going to fully investigate what exactly occurred," McClellan said.

He said President Bush (news - web sites) considered Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi a good friend and has assured him there will be a full investigation into the incident.

this is dumb.. if the u.s. had wanted her dead, they would've killed her...

[JoeChalupa]

Things like this happen during war.

[xrayzebra]

Things like this happen during war.

This didn't just happen, some Italian intel slug thought his stuff didn't
stink and told someone, screw the checkpoint we are taking her home.
And now they are suffering the consequences. You play the game, you
go by the rules. The "lady" got her scoop afterall. Now the medial will
have a field day. Bye the way has anyone seen anything about
Jackson or Martha or the Pope today.......just checking.

[JoeChalupa]

Oh, so it didn't happen?

My point being that war isn't perfect and innocent people die. Wrong, right or indifferent.....death happens.

[xrayzebra]

No it did happen. What I said was some intelligence agent thought he
was so important and had done such a wonderful thing he didn't have to
live by the rules and thought he could just run the checkpoint. And
others paid the price of his argorance, as well as himself.

[Nbadan]

News reports previously quoted Italians involved: US at airport

According to the Italians, the Americans were informed about their mission and in fact were waiting for the agents' return with their passenger at the airport. This UPI international corrspondent's article refers to what I previously read:

"On Saturday, a SISMI officer who was also traveling with Calipari was quoted in the Italian media as saying that the car was moving quite slowly and cautiously, and that there was no indication that they were at a checkpoint. The Milan paper Il Corriere della Sera also reported that not only was Sgrena's release known to the Americans, but a U.S. Army colonel was among those waiting for the journalist at Baghdad airport to see her off.

Another official who asked not to be named told United Press International by phone from Rome that the feeling in Italian official circles was that someone with as much experience of conditions in Iraq as Nicola Calipari would hardly have attempted to crash a U.S. military checkpoint." http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20050307-...


And another article from the UK:


"Italy is well aware that its habit of paying large sums to secure the release of its nationals is disapproved of by the Americans and British. All negotiations are therefore carried on in secret. But at Baghdad airport Mr Calipari explained at the US headquarters what his team had come to do. It was arranged that an American colonel would be on hand at the airport when Ms Sgrena arrived for her flight back to Italy. By the time the team had rented a four-wheel drive it was already 5pm." http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.j...

So if the US military in charge of the airport knew that the Italian intelligence agents were going to be returning to the airport and were waiting with other Italians for their return (especially with a released hostage of note who was being returned home to a US ally nation), wasn't it their responsibility to "coordinate" with the US ground troops patrolling the road and the manning the checkpoints?

[Gerryatrics]

How is it that a slow moving, unarmored car is targeted by US Tanks or armored vehicles, is sprayed with 300 to 400 rounds of ammunition (most likely .50 caliber... think really big holes) and only one of the three or four occupants is killed after being hit by one bullet. And the person "targeted" only receives a minor gash on her shoulder from a small piece of shrapnel? Oh yeah, and she says she personally picked handfuls of bullets of the seat(Il Manifesto, the U.S., and the death of Calipari)... Yeah, that makes perfect sense.

On Saturday, a SISMI officer who was also traveling with Calipari was quoted in the Italian media as saying that the car was moving quite slowly and cautiously

The car kept on the road, going under an underpass full of puddles and almost losing control to avoid them. We all incredibly laughed. It was liberating. Losing control of the car in a street full of water in Baghdad and maybe wind up in a bad car accident after all I had been through would really be a tale I would not be able to tell.

The car was going fast enough to be in danger of losing control, but not fast enough to possibly alarm a US checkpoint or convoy?

So if the US military in charge of the airport knew that the Italian intelligence agents were going to be returning to the airport and were waiting with other Italians for their return (especially with a released hostage of note who was being returned home to a US ally nation), wasn't it their responsibility to "coordinate" with the US ground troops patrolling the road and the manning the checkpoints?

So you think this mysterious colonel should have contacted all the troops in the area between downtown Baghdad and the airport and told them not to fire on any cars that refused to stop at a checkpoint because they might be Italian? Brilliant idea that. And maybe instead of firing guns at terrorists who are attacking them, US troops should throw flowers and politely ask the terrorists to stop shooting at them.

[Useruser666]

One other point of note. 50 caliber bullets don't get stuck in car seats.

[Nbadan]

One other point of note. 50 caliber bullets don't get stuck in car seats.

Your assuming these were all 50 cal shots fired. The incident report clearly states that there was no 'official' checkpoint at the point of the incident, although the U.S. has recently changed it stance and called it a 'strategic checkpoint' - read ambush(?). Either way, there could have been small arms fire.

What do you call it when you immediately start firing on a approaching car without giving the driver a chance to escape the situation?

[Nbadan]

The car was going fast enough to be in danger of losing control, but not fast enough to possibly alarm a US checkpoint or convoy?

Why would a Italian agent who knows how dangerous these roads can be, be traveling at a high rate of speed and not know the correct procedure when approaching a U.S. military convoy in such a situation?

More than likely the accident was caused by the condition of the roads than by the speed they were traveling.

[CommanderMcBragg]

What do you call it when you immediately start firing on a approaching car without giving the driver a chance to escape the situation?

Doing your duty? I don't blame our boys for protecting themselves.