Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Kidnappers: "Give us Abdul Rahman"

From Reuters:
The kidnappers of an Italian photojournalist have demanded Italy hand over an Afghan who converted to Christianity from Islam by midnight Sunday in return for the hostage's release, a Web site said.

Gabriele Torsello was taken by five gunmen last Thursday in the violence-plagued south of the country. Afghan police say he is being held by the Taliban, but the group has denied any involvement, blaming criminals.

The kidnappers did not say what they would do if their demand was refused, said PeaceReporter (www.peacereporter.net), which specializes in conflict cover.

They demanded Abdul Rahman, 41, who converted 16 years ago while working with a Christian aid group as a refugee in Pakistan, be returned to Afghanistan.
This development makes Islam look worse than any other incident I've heard about. That's quite an achievement. And there isn't even any specific European cravenness that would lead to capitulation. Italy would be doing something worse than substituting one hostage for another since Rahman would be going to certain death. (Hat tip: LGF)

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