Gabriele Torsello
Encyclopedia
Gabriele Torsello is an Italian
freelance journalist
and photojournalist based in London
who was abducted in Helmand Province
, Afghanistan
on 12 October 2006. Torsello, a Muslim
convert, was released on 3 November 2006. He is author of The Heart of Kashmir.
in southern Afghanistan when he was seized. His translator Ghulam Mohammad was left unharmed.
His captors moved him into a different location: "They arrived and opened the door. One of them grabbed me and took me out without letting me put my shoes on and without blindfolding me, a thing that they always did. He pushed me hard. I had the chains - I couldn't follow him and I had to jump to be able to follow him. I thought they were going to kill me. But they put me in a car instead." He was kept in chains in a windowless room during his captivity, living on a diet of potatoes and Afghan bread dipped in a watery soup.
According to the BBC and consolidated international press reports on a National Union of Journalists Photographers’ blog, Torsello made a telephone call on 12 October 2006 to the director of the hospital in Lashkar Gah confirming that he had been kidnapped and did not know where he was being held. He asked the director to explain to the kidnappers that he was a genuine photo reporter and not a spy. The phone call was eventually cut off, but he was able on a few occasions later to contact the Italian organisation Emergency
who ran the hospital.
A press release from Reporters Without Borders
quoted Mullah Dadullah
, a Taleban military chieftain, who threatened on 4 September 2006 to kill journalists who published news put out by the NATO forces in Afghanistan, as saying "We have an Islamic right to kill such reporters." However, a later report quotes a Taleban spokesman, Qari Yousaf Ahmadi, telling the Afghan news agency Pajhwok that the kidnappers should "free their hostage because it is not fair to hit at Italy by killing an innocent journalist." He added that "the kidnappers are just bandits interested in money." Reporters Without Borders suggest that their original demands might have been just a way of introducing a ransom request. It is possible that the Taleban issue statements such as this to make kidnappings appear to be political rather than an exercise in revenue generation. To confuse the position, the captors are reported to have contacted Emergency and asked, in exchange for freeing Torsello, for the return to Afghanistan of Abdul Rahman
, the Afghan citizen who converted to Christianity and who escaped to Italy after he was sentenced to death in March 2006. Furthermore, the Italian press agency AGI
on 20 October 2006, quoted Torsello as saying, under duress, "The kidnappers frequently tell me that I am a spy and that British troops bombed Musa Qala and Nawzad districts on my intelligence", but that the abductors, contrary to their previous remarks, distanced themselves from the Taleban and said they were just Muslims fighting foreign occupation in the war-battered country.
Contact with Torsello was sporadic, but on 3 November, his kidnappers made a final telephone call to Emergency (who had been acting as intermediaries during the negotiations), advising that Torsello had been released near Kandahar
. Staff from the aid agency found Torsello on the road a short time later. A substantial ransom is reported to have been paid to release Torsello, and the governments of Afghanistan and Italy have been criticised for the way they dealt with the Taleban in securing his release and that of other such hostages.
The head of Emergency, Gino Strada
, is quoted as saying that the Italian government entrusted US$2 million to Rahmatullah Hanefi
, the Afghan director of their hospital in Helmand, to secure the release of Torsello. In a separate hostage negotiation in April 7 for the release of Daniele Mastrogiacomo
, the Italian la Repubblica
foreign correspondent, and his interpreter and driver, Hanefi was arrested and put in jail in Kabul by Afghan President Hamid Karzai
’s government, alleging that Hanefi had played a part in the capture of Mastrogiacomo by the Taleban. Italy’s deputy foreign affairs minister, Ugo Intini
, confirmed that the Afghan government released five Taleban prisoners to win the freedom of Mastrogiacomo.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
freelance journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and photojournalist based in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
who was abducted in Helmand Province
Helmand Province
Helmand is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the southwest of the country. Its capital is Lashkar Gah. The Helmand River flows through the mainly desert region, providing water for irrigation....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
on 12 October 2006. Torsello, a Muslim
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
convert, was released on 3 November 2006. He is author of The Heart of Kashmir.
Kidnapping
Torsello was abducted in Helmand on 12 October 2006 and released on 3 November 2006. He was travelling on a bus from Helmand to KandaharKandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
in southern Afghanistan when he was seized. His translator Ghulam Mohammad was left unharmed.
His captors moved him into a different location: "They arrived and opened the door. One of them grabbed me and took me out without letting me put my shoes on and without blindfolding me, a thing that they always did. He pushed me hard. I had the chains - I couldn't follow him and I had to jump to be able to follow him. I thought they were going to kill me. But they put me in a car instead." He was kept in chains in a windowless room during his captivity, living on a diet of potatoes and Afghan bread dipped in a watery soup.
According to the BBC and consolidated international press reports on a National Union of Journalists Photographers’ blog, Torsello made a telephone call on 12 October 2006 to the director of the hospital in Lashkar Gah confirming that he had been kidnapped and did not know where he was being held. He asked the director to explain to the kidnappers that he was a genuine photo reporter and not a spy. The phone call was eventually cut off, but he was able on a few occasions later to contact the Italian organisation Emergency
Emergency (NGO)
Emergency is a humanitarian NGO that provides emergency medical treatment to civilian victims of war, especially in relation to landmines. It was founded by war surgeon Gino Strada in 1994 in Milan ....
who ran the hospital.
A press release from Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
quoted Mullah Dadullah
Mullah Dadullah
Maulavi or Mullah Dadullah or Dadullah Akhund was the Taliban's senior military commander until his death by U.S and U.K special ops in 2007. He was an ethnic Pashtun from the Kakar tribe of Kalai-Kakaran village in Uruzgan province of Afghanistan...
, a Taleban military chieftain, who threatened on 4 September 2006 to kill journalists who published news put out by the NATO forces in Afghanistan, as saying "We have an Islamic right to kill such reporters." However, a later report quotes a Taleban spokesman, Qari Yousaf Ahmadi, telling the Afghan news agency Pajhwok that the kidnappers should "free their hostage because it is not fair to hit at Italy by killing an innocent journalist." He added that "the kidnappers are just bandits interested in money." Reporters Without Borders suggest that their original demands might have been just a way of introducing a ransom request. It is possible that the Taleban issue statements such as this to make kidnappings appear to be political rather than an exercise in revenue generation. To confuse the position, the captors are reported to have contacted Emergency and asked, in exchange for freeing Torsello, for the return to Afghanistan of Abdul Rahman
Abdul Rahman (convert)
Abdul Rahman was an Afghan citizen who was arrested in February 2006 and threatened with the death penalty for converting to Christianity. On March 26, 2006, under heavy pressure from foreign governments, the court returned his case to prosecutors, citing "investigative gaps". He was released...
, the Afghan citizen who converted to Christianity and who escaped to Italy after he was sentenced to death in March 2006. Furthermore, the Italian press agency AGI
Agenzia Giornalistica Italia
Founded in 1950, the Agenzia Giornalistica Italia is one of the main Italian news agency. It is controlled by the Eni, at the time a state company....
on 20 October 2006, quoted Torsello as saying, under duress, "The kidnappers frequently tell me that I am a spy and that British troops bombed Musa Qala and Nawzad districts on my intelligence", but that the abductors, contrary to their previous remarks, distanced themselves from the Taleban and said they were just Muslims fighting foreign occupation in the war-battered country.
Contact with Torsello was sporadic, but on 3 November, his kidnappers made a final telephone call to Emergency (who had been acting as intermediaries during the negotiations), advising that Torsello had been released near Kandahar
Kandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
. Staff from the aid agency found Torsello on the road a short time later. A substantial ransom is reported to have been paid to release Torsello, and the governments of Afghanistan and Italy have been criticised for the way they dealt with the Taleban in securing his release and that of other such hostages.
The head of Emergency, Gino Strada
Gino Strada
Gino Strada is an Italian war surgeon and founder of the UN-recognized Italian NGO Emergency. Emergency has operated in thirteen war-torn countries, including Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Cambodia, and the Central African Republic.- Biography :Dr...
, is quoted as saying that the Italian government entrusted US$2 million to Rahmatullah Hanefi
Rahmatullah Hanefi
Rahmatullah Hanefi is a citizen of Afghanistan.Rahmatullah worked for an Italian charity named "Emergency", where he was the director of a Hospital the charity ran.-Rescue of Gabriele Torsello:...
, the Afghan director of their hospital in Helmand, to secure the release of Torsello. In a separate hostage negotiation in April 7 for the release of Daniele Mastrogiacomo
Daniele Mastrogiacomo
Daniele Mastrogiacomo is an Italian-Swiss journalist and a war correspondent for la Repubblica newspaper....
, the Italian la Repubblica
La Repubblica
la Repubblica is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. Founded in 1976 in Rome by the journalist Eugenio Scalfari, as of 2008 is the second largest circulation newspaper, behind the Corriere della Sera.-Foundation:...
foreign correspondent, and his interpreter and driver, Hanefi was arrested and put in jail in Kabul by Afghan President Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
’s government, alleging that Hanefi had played a part in the capture of Mastrogiacomo by the Taleban. Italy’s deputy foreign affairs minister, Ugo Intini
Ugo Intini
Ugo Intini is an Italian politician.A long-time member of the Italian Socialist Party and close aide of Bettino Craxi, he founded the Socialist Party in 1996 and joined the Italian Democratic Socialists in 1998....
, confirmed that the Afghan government released five Taleban prisoners to win the freedom of Mastrogiacomo.