Italy denies paying ransom to free two young aid workers who were held captive for five months in Syria. According to Italy's foreign minister, Paolo Gentiloni, "We are against paying ransom."
According to multiple online reports, this European nation had paid $12 million in ransom so that the hostages, Greta Ramelli, 21 years old, and Vanessa Marzullo, 20 years old, would finally be released. The report first came from a Middle Eastern media outlet.
The ransom-related reports sparked a multitude of debates in Italy, with regards to financing terrorism through ransoms. According to Matteo Salvini, the leader of Northern League, that if the rumors were true, then the payment would have been considered as "grotesque."
Only hours after Marzullo and Ramelli stepped of their plane in Rome, Gentiloni told the Lower House of Parliament that the reports about the ransom "were void of any basis in reality." He also admitted that he was pretty much surprised "that these sources were given credit without any verification."
He also added that Italy actually complies with "the rules and behaviors" that have been shared by the international community. This explanation of his, however, did not get the reaction that Gentiloni might have wanted to have.
Instead of shutting down the fire, his statements became the fuel that further drew skepticism from opposition law makers who had initially mentioned that he did not go far enough in clarifying whether or not there was actually an exchange of money.
Maria Edera Spadoni of the 5-Star Movement went directly to the point and asked him, "Did you pay or not?"
A relatively short video clip was released on New Year's Eve. Many have said that it had some deeply encoded ransom message that was meant for the Italian government. The young aid workers who were held captive were wearing a black garb that completely covered their bodies, pretty typical of devout Syrian ladies.
In the video, they asked the government of Italy to help bring them home. Ramelli could even be heard saying that they could be killed.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
