Intelligence sources on Friday
denied a report by British paper The Guardian that Italy paid a
ransom to free an Italian national kidnapped by Somali pirates
in 2010.
"They are baseless speculations" that put current
operations to free other Italian hostages around the world at
risk, the sources said.
The British daily cited a "leaked spy agency document" that
says Italian intelligence agency AISE paid a ransom of $525,000
for the release of Bruno Pelizzari, an Italian, and South
African Debbie Calitz, who were taken by Somali pirates in 2010
and released in 2012.
"To conceal the payment of the ransom, AISE, SNSA
(Somalia's national security agency) and the hostages agreed to
inform the media and public that the release of the hostages was
the result of a successful rescue operation by the Somali
security forces," The Guardian wrote.
Pelizzari and Calitz were sailing in the Indian Ocean when
they were seized by the pirates, who originally demanded $10
million for their release.
The government earlier this week denied paying a ransom
for the release of Syria aid workers Greta Ramelli and Vanessa
Marzullo, released in January after six months in captivity.
Reform Minister Maria Elena Boschi described reports of a
payment as "groundless innuendo" and warned against such talk
while other Italians were still being held hostage in crisis
areas.
Italy is currently seeking the release of Italian
restaurateur and former missionary Rolando Del Torchio, who was
abducted from his pizzeria and cafe' on the Philippines island
of Mindanao on Wednesday.
For now the radical Islamist group Abu Sayyaf is among the
primary suspects and search operations extended as far as Sulu
island, where it has a base.
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