This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/05/world/middleeast/italian-hostages-libya.html
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| 2 Italian Hostages of ISIS in Libya Are Freed, but 2 Others Are Feared Dead | 2 Italian Hostages of ISIS in Libya Are Freed, but 2 Others Are Feared Dead |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| CAIRO — Two Italian hostages have been freed from Islamic State captivity in Libya, but two others, who had been captured at the same time, have most likely been killed, Italian officials said on Friday. | CAIRO — Two Italian hostages have been freed from Islamic State captivity in Libya, but two others, who had been captured at the same time, have most likely been killed, Italian officials said on Friday. |
| In a statement, the Italian Foreign Ministry confirmed the release of Filippo Calcagno and Gino Pollicardo, technicians with Bonatti, an Italian contractor that does engineering and construction work for the oil and gas industries. | In a statement, the Italian Foreign Ministry confirmed the release of Filippo Calcagno and Gino Pollicardo, technicians with Bonatti, an Italian contractor that does engineering and construction work for the oil and gas industries. |
| They were among four Italians captured in July near an oil and gas plant outside Sabratha, about 50 miles west of Tripoli. The Islamic State has become a domineering presence in Sabratha in recent months. A video that circulated on social media showed the two freed Italians looking exhausted but relieved. | They were among four Italians captured in July near an oil and gas plant outside Sabratha, about 50 miles west of Tripoli. The Islamic State has become a domineering presence in Sabratha in recent months. A video that circulated on social media showed the two freed Italians looking exhausted but relieved. |
| But their joy was tempered by accounts that the bodies of their fellow captives had been discovered at the site of a gunfight between Islamic State fighters and a local militia in Sabratha on Wednesday. | But their joy was tempered by accounts that the bodies of their fellow captives had been discovered at the site of a gunfight between Islamic State fighters and a local militia in Sabratha on Wednesday. |
| Although not officially confirmed through DNA tests, Italian officials said privately that they had identified the bodies as those of Fausto Piani and Salvatore Failla, the other two hostages. | Although not officially confirmed through DNA tests, Italian officials said privately that they had identified the bodies as those of Fausto Piani and Salvatore Failla, the other two hostages. |
| The mayor of Sabratha told Italian news agencies that the two were among 12 bodies retrieved from the scene of the battle at a house outside the town. The hostages could have died in crossfire or been killed by their captors, he said. | The mayor of Sabratha told Italian news agencies that the two were among 12 bodies retrieved from the scene of the battle at a house outside the town. The hostages could have died in crossfire or been killed by their captors, he said. |
| The mixed fortunes of the four hostages highlighted both the danger faced by foreigners working in Libya’s diminished energy sector and the volatility of the situation in Sabratha, which has become a prominent focus of Western and Libyan efforts to stop the Islamic State’s aggressive expansion across the country. | The mixed fortunes of the four hostages highlighted both the danger faced by foreigners working in Libya’s diminished energy sector and the volatility of the situation in Sabratha, which has become a prominent focus of Western and Libyan efforts to stop the Islamic State’s aggressive expansion across the country. |
| There have been repeated clashes in the town since American warplanes bombed an Islamic State training camp there last month, killing at least 43 people, including, most likely, a senior commander linked to two major assaults on foreign tourists in Tunisia last year. | There have been repeated clashes in the town since American warplanes bombed an Islamic State training camp there last month, killing at least 43 people, including, most likely, a senior commander linked to two major assaults on foreign tourists in Tunisia last year. |
| That attack also killed two Serbian hostages, drawing an angry rebuke from Belgrade, which said it had been negotiating their release. The dead hostages, who worked at the Serbian Embassy in Tripoli, had been abducted from a convoy as they passed through Sabratha in November. | That attack also killed two Serbian hostages, drawing an angry rebuke from Belgrade, which said it had been negotiating their release. The dead hostages, who worked at the Serbian Embassy in Tripoli, had been abducted from a convoy as they passed through Sabratha in November. |
| Although Sabratha is far from the Islamic State’s main stronghold around Surt, about 270 miles along the coast to the southeast, the extremists have tried to assert their authority there in recent weeks by clashing violently with other militia groups and, at one point, beheading rival fighters and blocking a road with their decapitated bodies. | Although Sabratha is far from the Islamic State’s main stronghold around Surt, about 270 miles along the coast to the southeast, the extremists have tried to assert their authority there in recent weeks by clashing violently with other militia groups and, at one point, beheading rival fighters and blocking a road with their decapitated bodies. |
| Kidnapping for ransom has become a major problem in Libya as the country has splintered into chaos since the ouster of its longtime dictator, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, in 2011. | |
| Italian officials tried to negotiate the release of the four oil and gas workers after they were abducted last summer near the Mellitah plant, which is operated by the Italian energy giant Eni, about 10 miles from Sabratha. | Italian officials tried to negotiate the release of the four oil and gas workers after they were abducted last summer near the Mellitah plant, which is operated by the Italian energy giant Eni, about 10 miles from Sabratha. |
| A report in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said the four men had been betrayed by their driver, who they said came from a family of Islamic State sympathizers. | A report in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said the four men had been betrayed by their driver, who they said came from a family of Islamic State sympathizers. |
| The circumstances of their release were unclear. The Associated Press quoted Hussein al-Zawadi, who leads the military council in Sabratha, as saying that the two hostages had broken down the front door of the house where they were being held and sought refuge with neighbors. Some Italian newspapers said that a partial ransom had been paid. | The circumstances of their release were unclear. The Associated Press quoted Hussein al-Zawadi, who leads the military council in Sabratha, as saying that the two hostages had broken down the front door of the house where they were being held and sought refuge with neighbors. Some Italian newspapers said that a partial ransom had been paid. |
| In a video taken after their release, Mr. Calcagno and Mr. Pollicardo were shown smiling and with unkempt beards. They said that they were safe at a police station, and that they were being treated well. | |
| “We hope to urgently return to Italy, because we need to see our families,” said Mr. Pollicardo, who added in a separate Facebook post that they were “physically quite well but psychologically devastated.” | “We hope to urgently return to Italy, because we need to see our families,” said Mr. Pollicardo, who added in a separate Facebook post that they were “physically quite well but psychologically devastated.” |