Proof of life

The Spanish government has received a video showing three Spanish aid workers alive and apparently well after being kidnapped before Christmas in Mauritania. The three – identified as Alicia Gámez, Roque Pascual and Albert Vilalta – had been working for a Barcelona-based charity when they were seized by AQIM – Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and taken across the border into Mali.

There had been special concerns regarding the health of Vilalta, who was shot in the leg at the time of the kidnapping, but in the video he appeared healthy and bandaged. The government says that receipt of the video means they are able to begin negotiations on behalf of their compatriots; however, the Spanish authorities stress that they will not pay any ransom demanded by the hostage takers.

Disappearing journalists

Last year I wrote about how Mexico has taken centre stage as a hotbed for kidnapping in the Western Hemisphere. The country started out the new decade with a bang – literally – as 69 persons around Mexico were murdered in the first day of the year. And kidnapping, particularly by drug cartels, continues unabated, but now there is a rising category of victims – journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reported last week that two journalists, José Luis Romero and María Esther Aguilar Cansimbe, had been targets of abduction in the last two months. Nine reporters have been kidnapped since 2005. That number rose to 10 late last week when another journalist, Valentín Valdés Espinosa, was abducted and later killed in Saltillo. CPJ’s research reveals what a precarious profession journalism is in Mexico, with dozens of journalists murdered in the last two decades. Sadly, many more journalists remain on the “missing” list after being abducted and feared dead.

Deadline for French hostage in Mali

Al Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) have threatened to murder hostage Pierre Camatte in 20 days unless four Al Qaeda members are released from prison. Camatte, abducted in Mali two months ago, shortly before AQIM kidnapped several Spaniards near the border of Mauritania and Mali.

Last year, AQIM carried out the execution of a British hostage after similar demands went unmet. AQIM has not announced yet what conditions it is placing on the release of its Spanish captives.

Freedom, for better and worse

The Philippines’ Abu Sayyaf Group has freed a teenager that they’d held hostage for four months in Basilan. Nineteen-year-old Donald John Capili is said to be in good condition, but the ASG continues to hold two Chinese citizens in the area.

Meanwhile, in Iraq, the militant alleged to be behind the kidnapping of Peter Moore and four other Britons has been freed, said the Interior Ministry. The release of Qais al-Khazali is said to provide hope that the whereabouts of the remaining hostage, Alan McMenemy, thought to be dead, will be confirmed. The family member of one of the hostages killed, however, has criticised the practice of negotiations with terrorists:

Captive French journalists “alive and well”

Two reporters who were abducted northeast of Kabul on Wednesday along with their Afghan assistants are said to be alive, healthy and well-treated. The journalists were filming a documentary for French channel FR3 when they were seized in Kapisa Province, allegedly by Taliban militants. Deutsche Welle reports a steady rise in kidnappings in Afghanistan, with journalists being the frequent target of attack.