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Revision as of 03:09, 17 April 2011
| Vittorio Arrigoni | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1975-02-04)4 February 1975 Besana Brianza |
| Died | 15 April 2011(2011-04-15) (aged 36) Gaza |
| Occupation | International Solidarity Movement activist, journalist, blogger |
| Language | Italian |
| Nationality | Italian |
Vittorio Arrigoni (4 February 1975 – 15 April 2011) was an Italian reporter, writer and peace activist.
Early life and beginning of activism
Arrigoni was born in the town of Besana in Brianza, near Milan, Italy. He claimed that it was in his blood to fight for freedom as his grandfathers fought against the former fascist regime in Italy. He had the Arabic word for resistance (muqawama) tattooed on his right arm. Once he passed his maturita exams in Italy, he began traveling around the world. In 2002, he visited Jerusalem which according to his mother was the "moment he understood his work would be concentrated there." His mother, Egiddia Beretta, is the mayor of Besana.
ISM work and journalism in Gaza
Arrigoni was credited as one of the many activists who revived the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a pro-Palestinian pacifist group that works in the Palestinian territories. In August 2008, he participated in the Free Gaza humanitarian mission aimed to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip in place since June 2007 when Hamas took power in the territory. He was on the first boat that arrived in the Port of Gaza, describing that moment as "one of the happiest and most emotional" of his lifetime. While volunteering to act as a human shield for a Palestinian fisherman off Gaza's coast in September 2008, Arrigoni was injured by flying glass after the Israeli Navy used a water cannon to deter the vessel. In November, he was arrested by Israeli authorities after again acting as a human shield for fishermen off Gaza's coast.
He returned to Gaza prior to the Israeli military's offensive against the territory Operation Cast Lead in December 2009. Arrigoni became one of the few foreign journalists working in Gaza during the war; he worked with Radio Popolare and as reporter for the Italian newspaper Il manifesto. He later published a book, Restiamo umani, a collection of his reportages from Gaza during the war. It translated in English as Gaza, Stay Human with a preface by the Israeli historian Ilan Pappé.
Arrigoni was known to be strongly pro-Palestinian and critical of Israeli policies in the Palestinian territories—those views evident in his website, Guerrilla Radio. At times, he described the blockade on Gaza as "criminal" and "villainous" and the government of Israel as "one of the worst apartheid regimes in the world." One of his last posts on Guerrilla Radio—which he wrote hours before he was kidnapped and killed—praised Palestinian efforts to smuggle goods into Gaza via underground tunnels as an "invisible battle for survival."
Kidnapping and death
Arrigoni was kidnapped on April 15, 2011, by suspected members of a Salafist militant group operating in Gaza known as "Tawhid and Jihad." In a video they posted on YouTube in which they identified themselves as belonging to a previously unknown group, "The Brigade of the Gallant Companion of the Prophet Mohammed bin Muslima,"" Arrigoni was blindfolded with blood seen around his right eye. The captors demanded the release of their leader Walid al-Maqdasi, imprisoned by the de facto government in Gaza a month earlier, as a ransom and threatened Arrigoni's execution if a 30-hour deadline was not met. The captors accused Arrigoni of "spreading corruption" and his home country Italy as an "infidel state."
For uncertain reasons, before the deadline expired, the captors executed Arrigoni by hanging in an empty house in the Mareh Amer area in northern Gaza. After being led to the house by a member of the suspected Salafi group, Hamas security forces stormed the building and found Arrigoni's body. Tawhid and Jihad denied responsibility for the killing, but stated it was "a natural outcome of the policy of the government carried out against the Salafi." Iyad ash-Shami, a leader of another Salafi group based in Gaza, denied involvement of Salafi militants and said the killing went against Islam. Security forces in Gaza arrested four suspects in connection to the incident, and Haniya ordered an investigation by the Interior Ministry, and called Arrigoni's mother to send his condolences.
Following his death, several hundred Gazans rallied in the Unknown Soldier's Square to mourn Arrigoni while about 100 Palestinians and internationals marched through Ramallah to a house of mourning in nearby al-Bireh in the West Bank. In Bethlehem, a candle-light vigil was held outside the Church of the Nativity. Egyptian authorities offered to allow Arrigoni's family enter Gaza through the Rafah crossing and his body to be sent back to Italy via the crossing.
Arrigoni's murder was widely condemned in Palestine and by Italy and the United Nations. An official statement from Hamas described the killing as a "disgraceful act" by a "mentally deviated and outlawed group." Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniya stated the killing "does not reflect the values, morals, or the religion of the Palestinian people. This is an unprecedented case that won't be repeated." He also said Arrigoni would be designated a martyr and a street would be named after him. A spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas condemned it as an "act of treason." The foreign ministry of Italy expressed "deep horror over the barbaric murder," calling it an "act of vile and senseless violence committed by extremists who are indifferent to the value of human life." UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon pressed the Gaza government to bring to justice "the perpetrators of this appalling crime." Other Palestinian factions also released condemnations of Arrigoni's killing, with Fatah decrying it as an "act of betrayal", the Popular Resistance Committees calling it "cowardly," Islamic Jihad calling it a "grotesque crime," and Mustafa Barghouti saying it was a "shocking criminal act."
Notes
- ^ Kalman, Matthew. Idealistic blogger 'was more Palestinian than the criminals who killed him'. The Independent. 2011-04-16.
- ^ Hooper, John. Vittorio Arrigoni: pacifist supporter of the Palestinian cause. The Guardian. 2011-04-15. Cite error: The named reference "Guardian" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ New video released of slain Italian activist: 'Day I arrived in Gaza was happiest of my life'. Haaretz. 2011-04-15.
- Radio Popolare, announcements archive
- Gaza, Stay Human. Amazon Book Review.
- ^ Salafi leader: Islam prohibits murder. Ma'an News Agency. 2011-04-15.
- Hamas Says It Found Body of Italian Activist, New York Times 14 April 2011
- ^ Body of abducted Italian activist found in Gaza City. Ma'an News Agency. 2011-04-15.
- ^ Candlelight vigil held for Italian activist. Al-Jazeera. 2011-04-16.
- ^ Egypt offers to help slain activist's family enter Gaza. Ma'an News Agency. 2011-04-16.
See also
External links
- Guerrilla Radio, Vittorio Arrigoni's blog from Gaza.