Two journalists kidnapped in the Gaza Strip two weeks ago were released Sunday after their kidnappers forced them at gunpoint to say on a videotape that they had converted to Islam. It was not clear whether a deal had been struck with the abductors.
Steve Centanni, a 60-year-old American television reporter, and New Zealand-born cameraman Olaf Wiig, 36, who both work for the US Fox News Channel, were kidnapped August 14 from the heart of Gaza City. Their two-week detention was one of the longest abductions of foreigners in Gaza in years.
The two journalists were dropped off at the Beach Hotel in Gaza City by Palestinian security officials. A tearful Centanni briefly embraced a Palestinian journalist in the lobby, then rushed upstairs. Wiig walked into the lobby behind Centanni, briefly turned when someone pulled him by the arm and shouted "get off" before heading upstairs.
The release of Centanni and Wiig came on the heels of the broadcast of a video tape, sent to the Gaza bureau of Al-Jazeera, in which they said their abductors would not harm them since they had converted to Islam.
"I am really fine, healthy, in good shape and so happy to be free," Centanni told the Fox Channel. Centanni said he and Wiig were forced to convert to Islam at gunpoint. "I have the highest respect for Islam . . . but it was something we felt we had to do because they had the guns and we didn't know what the hell was going on," he said.
In the video released earlier by the militants, Centanni and Wiig were shown sitting cross-legged, reading statements announcing that they had converted to Islam. At times, they were filmed wearing long Arab-style robes. "I changed my name to Khaled. I have embraced Islam and say the word Allah," Centanni said.
A previously unknown group, the Holy Jihad Brigades, had called for the US to free Muslim prisoners in exchange for the men's release. The US had rejected the demand.
Later Sunday, the two journalists made a joint appearance with Palestinian prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas. Haniyeh, Centanni and Wiig sat in a circle at the Beach Hotel. Wiig was also accompanied by his wife, Anita McNaught.
Senior Palestinian security officials said that the name Holy Jihad Brigades was a front for local militants, and that the Palestinian authorities had known the identity of the kidnappers from the start, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Haniyeh also confirmed that the kidnappers were from Gaza, squashing speculation that Al Qaeda had directed the abduction. "The kidnappers have no link to Al Qaeda or any other organisation or faction," Haniya said. "Al Qaeda does not exist in the Gaza Strip."
It remained unclear whether the kidnappers had ties to Hamas or Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades, a violent offshoot of the Fatah movement led by Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president. A third group, the Popular Resistance Committees, claimed Sunday that it had helped mediate the release of the journalists.
Haniyeh was evasive Sunday when asked whether he would try to arrest the kidnappers, the AP report said. Before Hamas ousted Fatah in March this year, it had frequently criticised the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority for cutting deals with kidnappers and letting them go without punishment.
"I want to thank everybody. I am happy to be here. I hope that this never scares a single journalist away from coming to Gaza to cover the story because the Palestinian people are very beautiful and kind hearted," Centanni told reporters later. "The world needs to know more about them. Don't be discouraged."
Wiig also said he was worried that the kidnapping would scare off reporters from the area. "My biggest concern really is that as a result of what happened to us foreign journalists will be discouraged from coming to tell the story and that would be a great tragedy for the people of Palestine," he said. "You guys need us on the streets, and you need people to be aware of the story."
Wiig's wife, Anita McNaught, thanked Palestinian officials and Fox News for their efforts in getting the men released. The men refused to take questions, then travelled to the Erez border terminal and crossed into Israel.
In a phone call with Fox News, Centanni said that during his capture, he was held at times face down in a dark garage, tied up in painful positions, and that he and Wiig were forced at gunpoint to make statements, including that they had converted to Islam.
Centanni said he and Wiig were kidnapped as they were driving down a narrow side street in Gaza City. "A car stopped in front of us. ... Masked gunmen, four of them, ran over to our car, yanked open the doors, grabbed us by the wrist with a pistol to our heads and stuffed us in the back seat ... and slipped a black hood over our head," he said, according to a Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) report.
Centanni said the kidnappers requested "many things" of them during their captivity. "They requested written statements about what I'd done in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Kashmir, where I'd never been. We had to write and write and write," he said.
In Horsted Keynes, West Sussex, where Wiig has lived for six years with his wife, former BBC presenter Anita McNaught, there was relief, according to Press Asociation.
McNaught's aunt, Alison Mountain, who lives next door to the couple, said: "That's excellent news. It was getting a bit depressing when the deadline had passed and there was no news, but this is wonderful. You have your feelings about what has happened, but you just hope everything will turn out fine. It has obviously been worse for Anita than it has been for me, and I'm sure she is just relieved."
Close friend Meri Black, who also lives nearby, said: "That's terrific news. It is a great relief that they have been released unharmed. When you don't hear any news, it can be quite worrying, but this is great."
