Daniele Mastrogiacomo

Daniele Mastrogiacomo ( born September 30, 1954 in Karachi, Pakistan ) is an Italian- Swiss journalist and reporter for the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, which was released kidnapped on 5 March 2007 in Afghanistan and on 19 March 2007 after two weeks.

Life

Daniele Mastrogiacomo is the son of a Swiss mother and an Italian. As an expert on foreign policy, he began in 1980 his work in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. Since 1992 he has been working there as an international reporter.

He reported on events such as the Mani pulite, the murder of Marta Russo and the trial of Erich Priebke. In addition, he was a correspondent in Afghanistan, Iran, Palestine, Iraq and Somalia. In 2006 he was during the Lebanon war in use.

Abduction

On 5 March 2007 Daniele Mastrogiacomo was kidnapped in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, together with two locals, his interpreter Adschmal Naqshbandi and his driver Sjed Agha of the Taliban. The hostage-takers had threatened his assassination, if the Italian Government should establish a timetable for the withdrawal of the 2,000 Italian soldiers from Afghanistan within a week. On 15 March 2007 Daniele Mastrogiacomo had appealed in a video to the then Prime Minister Romano Prodi to work for his release. His driver Sjed Agha was beheaded by the kidnappers.

After two weeks of being held hostage Daniele Mastrogiacomo was released on 19 March 2007. In return, Kabul had released five Taliban militants from prison. Ransom should not have been paid. The exchange had been criticized from many sides. Shortly after his release he went to a hospital in Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand. On 8 April 2007, announced that the hostage-takers had also abducted with Daniele Mastrogiacomo interpreter Adschmal Naqshbandi was beheaded.

Publications

• Daniele Mastrogiacomo: I giorni della paura. I / O, 2009, ISBN 8876418741st