No word on Fox News kidnapJulia Day and agencies
Wednesday August 23, 2006
MediaGuardian.co.uk
The fate of two Fox News journalists kidnapped in Gaza is still unknown, nine days after they were abducted.Steve Centanni, a 60-year-old American, and his cameraman, New Zealander Olaf Wiig, 36, were abducted by gunmen from their TV van on Monday August 14 near the Palestinian security services' headquarters.
Their captors have not come forward with demands and the authorities do not appear to know who the kidnappers are.
Major militant groups in Gaza denied having any connection to the incident.
Most kidnappings in Gaza - more than two dozen foreigners have been snatched in the past two years - follow a clear pattern of demands, brief negotiations and the release of those abducted.
But press freedom organisation Reporters Sans Frontiers is becoming increasingly concerned that no group has claimed responsibility, despite many appeals for the release of the men.
"Foreign journalists have been kidnapped before in the Palestinian territories, but for the most part they have been treated relatively well and freed after just a few hours in captivity," said a statement from RSF.
"The leading Palestinian militant organisations have insisted that they are in no way linked to the abduction of Centanni and Wiig."
Around 30 Palestinian journalists staged a demonstration on August 19 to call for the release of the men, carrying banners that said "No to the kidnapping of journalists. Yes to freedom of the press."
The Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas, said the release of Centanni and Wiig was a priority for his government.
New Zealand has confirmed its officials will stay in the Middle East for as long as it takes to secure the men's freedom.
Senior New Zealand diplomat Peter Rider, who arrived in the region at the weekend to lead efforts to secure Wiig's release, said no firm leads or information have yet emerged about the missing pair.
"At this stage I think its premature to say that anybody has any direct information or direct lines of communication with the kidnappers," he said in a radio interview.
"Everybody is under no illusions that this has potential to add to the [Palestinian] government's credibility, and everybody will be disappointed if they can't [find the kidnapped men]."
Mr Rider said kidnappers usually made contact within a week of the kidnapping, "but Gaza is a very confused place - it can drag on for quite a bit longer".
"We are preparing, if necessary, to be on the ground ... to support Anita [Wiig's wife] for as long as it takes."
Anita McNaught, Wiig's wife, has been speaking to anyone who will listen to try to free her husband, while Centanni's brother spoke to the Arabic-language TV station al-Jazeera to appeal for the men's release.
Micaela Schweitzer-Bluhm, a spokeswoman for the US consulate in Jerusalem, said the US government had not received any information on the journalists.
"We are working with the Palestinian services to try to find these individuals and ensure their release," she said.
She added that the US consul-general, Jacob Walles, raised the issue of the hostages in his meeting on Monday with the Palestinian president.
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In the beginning, I took the reports on faith that the Palis were doing all they could to assist. Not anymore.
It seems to me it is only lip service.