GAZA CITY, 2 January 2006 — Palestinian security forces freed a kidnapped Italian after a gunbattle with his captors in the increasingly lawless Gaza Strip as Palestinian factions announced the end of a truce with Israel in the New Year with the firing of a volley of rockets into the Jewish state.
Late Saturday, a missile fired by an Israeli drone killed two Palestinians in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza. The dead men were identified as Hamza Hmdona, 26, and Motaaz Hmdona, 22, from Beit Lahiya. Speaking to reporters at the Gaza hospital where the casualties were taken, Hamas spokesman Mushir Al-Masri threatened revenge against Israel.
Palestinian security forces stormed a building in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis where the Italian hostage was being held, freeing the man after a shootout with his kidnappers. No one was hurt in the shootout, and the kidnappers escaped, a security official said. Palestinian security officials and an Italian diplomat identified the freed hostage as Alessandro Bernardini, an Italian peace activist. He was traveling on a minibus carrying 10 foreigners, including European lawmakers, in Khan Younis early yesterday. Armed men stopped the minibus, forced the Italian out and sped away with him.
There was no claim of responsibility for the abduction, but a security official in Khan Younis said it was carried out by a small group linked to Fatah.
Bernardini works as an aide in the European Parliament and was part of a delegation that included two European lawmakers. After the ordeal, Bernardini drove off in a Palestinian security vehicle.
Later talking to reporters in Gaza City, he said he was treated well and would not change his pro-Palestinian views. “They gave me cigarettes and tea,” he said. “I’m not going to change my ideas about the Palestinians. I will not change my ideas about the (Israeli) occupation.” The operation to free the Italian hostage was a rare show of force by Palestinian security. There have been no arrests in previous kidnappings and President Mahmoud Abbas has been criticized for negotiating with kidnappers, drawing accusations that he has encouraged further abductions.
In Rome, Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini confirmed the release and said he had asked the Italian consulate in Jerusalem to thank Abbas “for the intervention that contributed to the quick and positive resolution of the event.”
The Palestinian Authority is trying to attract foreign investment and aid for Gaza but spate of kidnappings has served to scare people off. All but a handful of the UN’s foreign staff have left Gaza but the organization was still the target of gunmen on Saturday night who stormed its club on the shores of the Mediterranean, beat up a lone security guard on duty and then detonated a number of hand grenades.
The main Palestinian factions had signed up to a truce brokered by Abbas in March, agreeing to “cool down” their campaign of attacks against Israel at least until the end of the year. Abbas had strong hopes that they would agree to extend the truce but Israel’s assassination of activists during the truce period led to its demise. Confirmation that the factions no longer feel bound by the so-called “tahdiya” came with statements from three groups which claimed credit for a series of rocket attacks into Israel.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the armed wing of Islamic Jihad said in a joint statement they had fired two rockets at the southern Israeli town of Sderot while the Popular Resistance Committees said in a separate statement it had fired rockets at army posts and at a kibbutz in Israel.
An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed that three rockets landed on southern Israel but without causing any injuries.
The armed wing of Hamas, responsible for the majority of attacks during the five-year intifada, also confirmed that it was ending its adherence to the truce.
Abbas criticized the decision, saying “those who speak of an end to the truce are committing a grave error.”
— Additional input from agencies
