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By Tom Elia
March 9, 2005
The New Editor
The release of the kidnapped Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, leading to the subsequent
tragic death of an Italian intelligence officer has resulted in criticism of the US from many
corners. The incident, occurring when US troops near a Baghdad checkpoint accidentally
fired upon the Italians' car at night, has sparked passionate declarations from opponents of
the war in Iraq.
Many are reasonably calling for an investigation of the incident; some in Italy are using the
incident as a pretext for calling for the withdrawal of Italian troops from Iraq; and many
others, including Ms. Sgrena, are accusing the US of deliberately targeting her for attack,
echoing accusations made by ex-CNN news executive Eason Jordan at the World Economic
Forum in Davos, Switzerland where he reportedly said the US military purposely targeted
journalists in Iraq.
However, a piece in the Dutch publication Nederlands Dagblad by veteran war
correspondent Harald Doornbos discloses the naïve and sharply ideological anti-American
mindset of Ms. Sgrena, which casts some light on why she may have been so easily
kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents, and serves as a metaphor for the incompetence some on the
Left in the West have when it comes to discerning just who the bad guys really are.
According to a translation of the article provided by the Dutch blog Zacht Ei, Mr. Doornbos
writes:
"'Be careful not to get kidnapped,' I told the female Italian journalist sitting next to me in the
small plane that was headed for Baghdad. 'Oh no,' she said. 'That won't happen. We are
siding with the oppressed Iraqi people. No Iraqi would kidnap us.'"
As a second-generation American descended from Assyrian immigrants, it never ceases to
amaze me how ignorant many people in the West are about who is siding with who in the
region, but I digress. Doornbos continues:
"It doesn't sound very nice to be critical of a fellow reporter. But Sgrena's attitude is a
disgrace for journalism. Or didn't she tell me back in the plane that 'common journalists such
as yourself' simply do not support the Iraqi people? 'The Americans are the biggest enemies
of mankind' the three women behind me had told me, for Sgrena traveled to Iraq with two
Italian colleagues who hated the Americans as well."
Doornbos then explains that the women ignored his safety concerns, and criticized him for
traveling with the US military as an embedded journalist.
"'You don't understand the situation. We are anti-imperialists, anti-capitalists, communists,'
they said. The Iraqis only kidnap American sympathizers, the enemies of the Americans have
nothing to fear."
Doornbos goes on to write that he told the three women they were wrong and needed to be
cautious.
"But they knew better. When we arrived at Baghdad Airport, I was waiting for a jeep from
the American army to come pick me up. I saw one of the Italian women walking around
crying. An Iraqi had stolen her computer and television equipment. They were standing
outside shivering, waiting for a cab to take them to Baghdad."
The just-fell-off-the-turnip-truck quality of this scene is hard to ignore, but the relatively
harmless theft of equipment pales in comparison to the kidnapping and subsequent death and
serious injury that were to follow. Doornbos blames the events on Sgrena's belief system.
"With her bias Sgrena did not only jeopardize herself, but due to her behavior a security
officer is now dead, and the Italian government (prime minister Berlusconi included) has had
to spend millions of euros to save her life."
So there we have it. A reporter from a communist newspaper in Italy, thinking she has
nothing to fear from Iraqi insurgents because of her anti-American stance, gets kidnapped,
and as a result, lots of time, money, manpower, and ultimately -- tragically -- a life is
expended because her adherence to a failed political ideology renders her incapable of seeing
reality. Yet, the system she so loathes secures her release. As if to cover for her own
foolishness, she now claims the US purposely tried to have her killed. If her political
viewpoint offered any hint, it would seem she did that quite well enough on her own --
without anyone else’s help.
Doornbos writes:
"It is to be hoped that Sgrena will decide to have a career change. Propagandist or MP
perhaps. But she should give up journalism immediately."
Who knows? If she follows Doornbos’ advice and leaves the journalism profession, perhaps
a career as an academic in the US may be the best bet for Sgrena.
Tom Elia is a contributing editor for The New Editor.
Paul Geary
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