#7 Jules,
I may have misunderstood. If you are asking for verification by the Italian gov that they paid ransom for Sgrena, then you won't get it. They are not going to officially admit they paid blood money for that communist bitch. Money that will be used kill hundreds or thousands of Iraqis and to atack US troops (who are supposedly an ally). But here is a BBC report detailing ransom rumors.
Italy's ransom dilemma
The Italian media have been carrying unconfirmed reports that 6m euros ($7.9m, £4.1m) changed hands to free Ms Sgrena. The government has not confirmed the claims, but for the first time there has been no official denial either.
When two young Italian aid workers were freed in September 2004, then Foreign Minister Franco Frattini denied that a ransom had been paid. But MP Giuliano Selva said the denial was "purely official", and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi spoke of a "difficult choice which had to be made".
...
Talking to Italian daily Corriere della Sera, Agriculture Minister Gianni Alemanno said thought it "very likely" that a ransom had been paid, and justified the move. "It is far preferable to pay a price that is relatively low compared to the value of a human life and to the political price of being blackmailed into pulling out the troops," he said. |
The car in which an Italian secret agent died shielding a hostage from US "friendly fire" in Iraq has arrived in Italy for investigators to inspect. An Italian air force cargo plane delivered the Toyota Corolla to a base near Rome days after reports suggested America had cleared its soldiers. Rome is still investigating the death of agent Nicola Calipari, who died as his car approached a US checkpoint. Prosecutors are due to examine the car at the Practica di Mare air base, the Associated Press news agency reports.