Video shows Italian hostage in Djanet alive

An Italian hostage kidnapped on February 2, in Djanet locality, southernmost of Algeria, by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), is shown to be alive in a new video, of which a copy has been got by Malian security services on Monday.

“New evidence exists that the Italian hostage kidnapped in the beginning of February in Algeria and held in the Sahel, is alive. A video arrived,” a source close to the case told AFP news agency.
A separate source confirmed the information and said: “The evidence of life is a video sent by the kidnappers,” AFP added.
Italian tourist Maria Sandra Mariani, 53, kidnapped in south-east Algeria, was shown to be alive in an audio recording broadcast by Al-Arabiya television in Dubai on February 18.
According to these sources Mariani is being held by a combat unit (katiba) of AQIM led by one of the group’s radical leaders Abou Zeid.
Meanwhile, security sources mentioned that Italian security experts are coordinating with counterparts from Sahel countries to release the hostage.
The sources avoided to specify whether the video tape included a message by the hostage to her family or to the Italian authorities, or even to require a ransom.
In fact, observers believe the kidnappers are likely to require Italy to pay ransom to get its national free, which would reemerge the debate over the payment of ransoms to terrorists. To recall, Algeria has managed persuading the African Union to issue a resolution banning the payment of ransoms, while efforts are still on to persuade the international community to incriminate such an act through a UN resolution.