Posted on 03/08/2005 10:13:31 AM PST by Crackingham
Gianfranco Fini, the Italian Foreign Minister, increased a diplomatic row with the United States today by demanding that Washington identify and punish those responsible for the shooting of Rome’s top intelligence agent in Iraq. Signor Fini dismissed the American version that a lack of communication was responsible for the death of Nicola Calipari, who died in a hail of gunfire from US troops as he escorted a freed Italian hostage to Baghdad airport on Friday. Signor Calipari had made "all the necessary contacts" with US authorities in Baghdad, the minister said.
In his account to parliament of the shooting, which has sparked a diplomatic row with the US, Signor Fini said: "The reconstruction of the event does not coincide fully with what the American authorities have told us."
He said that the car carrying Signor Calipari and the freed hostage, Guiliana Sgrena, to freedom was not speeding and was not ordered to stop by US troops, as American officials have indicated. He also dismissed as "groundless" a suggestion from Signora Sgrena, the hostage in question, that American forces had ambushed the car because they disagreed with Italy's policy of paying the ransom demands of Iraqi kidnappers.
Italy reportedly paid more than $6 million (£3.1 million) for Signora Sgrena's release, which was negotiated by Signor Calipari himself.
"The car was travelling at a velocity that couldn't have been more than 40 kilometres (25 miles) per hour," Signor Fini said.
Rejecting the ambush claim, Signor Fini said: "It was an accident. This does not prevent - in fact it makes it a duty - for the Government to demand that light be shed on the murky issues, that responsibilities be pinpointed, and, where found, that the culprits be punished.
"We ask for truth and justice."
The minister took pains to point out, however, that Italy has an "old and empathetic friendship" with the United States, adding: "We hope that that within the next few hours this affirmed wish for loyal co-operation will yield its first major concrete result.
"We hope that this is not an opportunity to whip up political campaigns and to sow anti-American sentiment in public opinion, which certainly have no reason to exist."
Very good questions. I don't know if he was the head of intelligence or not. If he was, that makes it all the odder.
That's an old picture of the car she was kidnapped in originally. That was shown, incorrectly, yesterday as the car that was involved in the checkpoint incident. But, there are more update photos online.
That's not the car.
" A U.S. official said that of all the cars that passed through the checkpoint that night, the reporter's vehicle was the only one fired upon.
"Something that car did caused the soldiers to fire," said the official, who asked not to be named. "
How does he know?
I caught a few minutes of this lying woman on CNN this am. She was saying, "It's not for me to say it was an ambush. But it looked like an ambush. They did ambush us. It was an ambush. We were only going 20 mph, They were on the side of the road, and we had no idea it was a checkpoint. They were more or less hiding there, as if in ambush. The soldiers didn't signal, shine lights of warning or call out or shoot warning shots in the air. They tried to kill us. We were targeted."
CNN said she had no proof to back up her claims, and that US soldiers said they were driving at a high speed, ignored warning lights, shouts, waved arms, and warning shots. Finally, after trying all that, the soldiers fired into the engine block to stop the car. CNN made no comment about the Italian woman's account being ridiculous, clearly with an anti-American agenda, and that she probably ordered the driver to play 'chicken' at the checkpost to achieve an 'incident'. No speculation from CNN about the likelihood of what really happened, just deadpan repeating of that woman's lies. But they did say that several people had been killed at checkpoints since January, that people get confused and frightened and try to blow past soldiers, which gets them killed.
But we're not dealing with an uneducated, illiterate Iraqi here, we're dealing with a so called journalist who supposedly can read and write and speak English. So what didn't she understand about STOP OR WE'LL SHOOT!
Okay, if CNN and the Foreign Minister are now calling it an accident, that means they believe the US soldiers, not that lying sack of Italian humbug, who intimated yesterday that the US had targeted her because they didn't approve of ransoms being paid in kidnap cases.
That's not the car.
I know. If I followed the confusing discussion at LGF correctly, that car isn't even the one she was kidnapped in. According to them, the car in the photos was hit by the kidnappers' car.
Just read a Rowan Scarborough column in the WT...he said 'pickup' and that the 'truck' was being shipped back to Italy 'for examination by ballistic experts'.
At this point, looks like the vehicle in question is anybody's guess.
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20050308-121240-1847r.htm
The whole reason they kept it from the Americans is they KNOW our policy on paying off these people (thus FUNDING more attacks)
Don't play with fire kids... you know what might happen.
Yeah, it was a bit confusing on LGF yesterday when they were posting photos of that car. Actually, THAT car looks in even worse shape than the car that was shot up by "300 - 400" rounds, huh?
"We ought to tell them, 'Sorry for his death, but thats what happens when you pay TERRORISTS'."
This shooting had nothing to do with the payment to the terrorists. If it had....the woman would be dead.
For sure. Least they took this one to the car wash.
WOW! I missed that completely! Great point! Exactly who is this leftist praying to?
I think the woman was driving and tried to ram or run the checkpoint.
I think Cipriani was shot trying to grab the steering wheel.
They have just been looking for an excuse.
"We ask for truth and justice."
=----
Justice would have been death to all the ransom-payers.
Italy has no shame.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.