The focus of this story is all wrong.
The focus should be
"Italian Government Bank Rolling Iraq Terrorists"
5 million dollars now another 7 or 8 million more. These Italian agents should have been arrested. It is immaterial if you give terrorists 12 million dollars because you are Iran and hat the USA or Italy and supposedly our ally.
Is there any doubt that for every million dollars you give to terrorists you are buying the deaths of dozens if not hundreds of innocent people. What is the logic you ransom one person and virtually guarantee numerous other kidnappings and the deaths of other people.
I have to believe that this ransom money will inevitably cost several American Soldiers their lives. I would also guess this money they are giving will cause far more harm than the pitiful little help the Italians are giving us.
I saw one analyst say that many of the so-called “insurgents” were really basically criminals and not necessarily people with political motives who were being paid X number of dollars per bomb.
The amounts of alleged ransoms I quoted may be too high. It may be in the range of a million or two.
You're right!