Objective Reporting by Italian Communists...

I normally don't like to post large sections of text taken from other blogs, but this one is worth it I think.

You no doubt heard about the Italian Communist journalist, Guiliana Sgrena, who was kidnapped in Iraq recently. The Italian government paid a ransom for her, and after she was released Americans military personel accidently shot at her, killing an Italian Secret Service agent.

Sgrena is proclaiming that the Americans tried to kill her for various reasons.

Keeping that in mind, check out this translation of a Dutch news article posted in the Corner. It tells about a journalist who happened to sit next to Sgrena on the flight over to Baghdad:

"...Harald Doornbos, was working in Iraq as an embedded journalist for a small Dutch newspaper. He happened to be sitting next to Giuliana Sgrena on the plane to Baghdad. He describes a conversation he had with her and two other female Italian journalists heading for Iraq. Here’s a translation of the main sections:

“It might not be a nice thing to say about a fellow-journalist, but Sgrena’s attitude is a complete disgrace to journalism. Didn’t she observe while sitting next to me on the plane that “normal journalists like you” aren’t supporting the Iraqi people? “The Americans are the greatest enemies of mankind,” the three women told me, because Sgrena was travelling to Irak with two Italian colleagues who shared her enormous dislike of the Yankees.

“One I’d told them I wasn’t just heading for Baghdad, but was heading into Iraq as an embedded journalist (with the American army), I was treated like a Big Traitor. “I just don’t fancy getting kidnapped,” I told them. “That’s the only reason I’ll be travelling with the Americans.” They ridiculed me. “You obviously don’t understand the situation. We are anti-imperialists, anti-capitalists, communists,” they said. The Iraqis only kidnap the servants of the Americans; the enemies of America have nothing to fear.

“I then told them they were out of their minds. I said there’s just no denying the fact that Al-Qaeda-like groups are operating in Iraq, targeting western journalists. And Al-Qaeda, that’s the Arab exponent of fascism: anti-American, anti-Jewish and – especially – anti-communist. But they insisted they knew better. Once we arrived at Baghdad airport, I waited for an American army jeep to collect me. I saw one of the Italian women of Sgrena’s group walking around crying, because an Iraqi had stolen her computer and television equipment. They were standing outside shaking, waiting for a taxi to take them to Baghdad.

“With her preconceived ideas Sgrena didn’t just risk her own life. Her behaviour has now gotten a man killed, while the Italian government (Prime Minister Berlusconi) had to spend millions of euros to rescue her life."

Obviously, the experience of being kidnapped didn't change any of Sgrena's preconceived notions...

[Hat Tip: K-Lo in the Corner]