A radical Islamic group in the Gaza Strip has kidnapped an Italian activist.
Italian consular officials in the Palestinian territory say Vittorio Arrigoni was taken on Thursday morning. In a video posted on YouTube, Mr Arrigoni appears blindfolded with what looks like thick black tape. He seems to have been beaten.
Mr Arrigoni is the first foreigner kidnapped in Gaza since BBC journalist Alan Johnston was snatched in 2007.
The BBC's Gaza correspondent Jon Donnison says the group that is thought to have taken Mr Arrigoni is part of a movement sometimes called Salafism.
Salafists have often been in conflict with Hamas, the Islamist movement that governs Gaza, and they consider Hamas too moderate.
In the video, the kidnappers demand that Hamas release a number of Salafist prisoners. Mr Arrigoni is a pro-Palestinian activist who has been in Gaza for several years campaigning against Israel's ongoing blockade of the territory.
Hamas has been credited with eliminating the threat of kidnapping in Gaza up to now. |