The Christian Science Monitor, March 20, 2007
Taliban kidnappings rise, but style differs from Al Qaeda
The release of an Italian reporter in Afghanistan Monday sheds light on Taliban
tactics.
By Mark Sappenfield | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
NEW DELHI - Italy's confirmation Monday that the Taliban had released Italian
reporter Daniele Mastrogiacomo marked a positive end to an increasingly familiar
story in Afghanistan.
Unlike insurgents in Iraq, the Taliban had largely refrained from abducting journalists in
the past, and had never killed one that they had captured. In the past five months,
however, the Taliban have held four different sets of reporters, including Mr.
Mastrogiacomo, and they killed his Afghan driver last week, claiming that the man
was a government spy.
Although all the journalists have been freed, the events suggest that flashpoints
between journalists and the Taliban are on the rise. As the Taliban and NATO dial up
operations for what could be a crucial spring, tensions are mounting, and journalists
are being caught in the middle.
"Given the military situation there, the ante has been upped for journalists," says Bob
Dietz, Asia expert for the Committee to Protect Journalists in New York.
Although details were uncertain at press time, media reports suggested that
Mastrogiacomo had been freed in exchange for at least two Taliban prisoners: a
former spokesman named Latif Hakimi, and a former leader named Ustad Yasar. He
spent one night with tribal elders as an interim step toward freedom as the Taliban
pushed for more concessions. The Taliban demanded that a third person - also a
former spokesman - be released, but it was not certain if this had occurred.
Mastrogiacomo, a veteran journalist who has covered conflicts including Iraq and
Lebanon, was kidnapped on March 4 while reporting in Helmand, a Taliban stronghold
and currently the site of the largest NATO operation since the fall of the Taliban in
2001. He appeared to be well aware of the dangers of reporting from the area, which is
largely outside government control. According to one report, shortly before he was
captured, he told an editor at the Italian newspaper, La Repubblica, for which he
works, that he had a "rather delicate meeting" scheduled.
Mastrogiacomo's capture and release are a window into why the Taliban have been
more tolerant of journalists than has Al Qaeda.
"Al Qaeda in Iraq has ... the idea that all foreigners are the enemy. This has never
been the case with the Taliban," says Ahmed Rashid, author of "Taliban."
Instead, the Taliban have targeted those they see to be working for the current
Western-backed government, whether they be politicians, Western troops, or
contractors and aid workers. This also might have played into the abduction of
Mastrogiacomo. The Taliban initally misidentified him as a British writer named John
Nichol - who had previously been a member of the Royal Air Force - calling
Mastrogiacomo a British spy.
The Taliban consider themselves the legitimate Afghan government, and require
journalists to alert them of their plans to travel through Taliban-controlled areas. In the
past, most journalists have been detained for not alerting the Taliban of their travel
plans, and then released once Taliban authorities have established that they were not
spies or government officials.
This is an outgrowth of the Taliban's roots in the "holy war" against the Soviets, when
journalists were often the best allies of the mujahideen. "These people know what
Western journalism is," says Mr. Rashid.
Copyright © 2007 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved.
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