BBC correspondent Alan Johnston is freed by Hamas in Gaza at last

Hamas frees Johnston at last

[ 04/07/2007 - 06:49 AM ]

From Khalid Amayreh and news agencies

GAZA, (PIC)-- Fighters affiliated with Hamas's powerful armed wing, the Izzidin al Qassam Brigades, have finally succeeded in releasing BBC correspondent Alan Johnston from captivity in Gaza.

Johnston had been held hostage by a small group calling itself “Army of Islam,” believed to be affiliated with a powerful Gaza clan.

Efforts to release Johnston had repeatedly failed due to what one Hamas official described as “negative interference and obstruction” by Palestinian Authority security circles loyal to Dahlan and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

“You know the security apparatus affiliated with the treasonous camp did everything to keep Johnston in captivity in order to embarrass the government.

“Today, Hamas is proud to announce that it has fulfilled its promise to free Johnston unharmed,” said Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas leader in Gaza.

Hamas’s Chief Khalid Mishaal said the freeing of the BBC journalist showed that Hamas had brought order to the Gaza Strip by seizing power in the territory last month.

"We have been able to close this chapter which has harmed the image of our people greatly. The efforts by Hamas have produced the freedom of Alan Johnston," Mishaal told Reuters by telephone from Syria.

Referring to the American-backed Ramallah-based Abbas-Dahlan Fatah regime, Mishaal said "it showed the difference between the era in which a group used to encourage and commit security anarchy and chaos and the current situation in which Hamas is seeking to establish law and order.”

Johnston, 45, was handed over by his captors to Hamas officials before dawn Wednesday.

He appeared well and in good health minutes after his release from captivity.

"I was released a couple of hours ago. It was an appalling experience as you can imagine. Occasionally quite terrifying... Now it really is over," Johnston told BBC News from the home of interim Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneyya.

He added: “I am hugely grateful to the people who worked [for the release]. I think I am OK. To keep my mind in the right place was a constant battle."

Johnston was kidnapped in mid March by a previously-unknown group calling itself “Army of Islam.”

The group, affiliated with the powerful Doghmush clan, had demanded a huge ransom in return for releasing the BBC correspondent whose abduction infuriated the vast bulk of Palestinians who often pride themselves on their hospitability toward foreigners.

During the past few weeks, the kidnappers demanded that British authorities release an al-Qaida-affiliated prisoner held in Britain in connection with terrorism charges.

Most recently, after Hamas officials threatened to free him by force from the Doghmush clan's stronghold, Johnston was shown wearing a suicide belt with the warning he would die if that happened.

Hamas said Monday that its fighters had launched an operation aimed at freeing the abducted British journalist.

"The clocks have begun ticking toward the release of Alan Johnston," said spokesman Ghazi Hamad. "The operation of the Interior Ministry Executive Forces has started, and they are tightening the siege on the people involved in his kidnap."

Hamas sources said earlier a Palestinian civilian was killed in an exchange of fire with the group holding Johnston in the Gaza Strip.

No other casualties were reported in the fighting, which came after Hamas gunmen took up positions around the Army of Islam's stronghold, stepping up the pressure on the group to release Johnston.

Barhoum accused Johnston's captors of smearing the Palestinian people's reputation and of seeking to prove to the world that "we are a group of militias that fight each other to gain personal ends."

Since seizing control of Gaza last month, Hamas has demanded Johnston's release.

On Monday, Hamas arrested the spokesman of the Army of Islam, giving it a potentially valuable bargaining chip in its efforts to release Johnston.

Johnston has been held far longer than any Western journalist abducted in Gaza. Hamas has said it knows where to find him, but has not raided the hideout for fear he will come to harm.

Meanwhile, the Israeli government is voicing “consternation” and “worry” at the public relations victory Hamas has achieved following its success to free Johnston.

One Israeli journalist said “Undoubtedly, the Israeli government which is hell-bent on isolating Hamas is now worried that the release of Johnston will greatly enhance the image of the movement.”

The journalist who spoke on condition of anonymity added that “Johnston’s release is also bad news for PA leader Mahmoud Abbas who is trying to de-legitimize Hamas in coordination with Israel and the United States.”

BBC correspondent Alan Johnston is freed

Gaza - Ma'an - 

Date: 04 / 07 / 2007  Time:  08:17

The BBC correspondent, Alan Johnston, who was kidnapped in Gaza almost four months ago, has been released early on Wednesday morning. His release came after intense negotiations between Hamas and his captors, the Army of Islam, with mediation by the Popular Resistance Committees. Muslim clerics in the strip also contributed to his release by issuing a 'fatwa', or Islamic edict, demanding he be released.

Johnston was first taken to the headquarters of the deposed Palestinian prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, and then he was taken to his own home in the strip.

The details of the agreement which led to Johnston's release have not yet been revealed. However, hostages from the Hamas movement and the Army of Islam were released late on Tuesday night before Johnston's release. According to Reuters, no ransom was paid.

Ismail Haniyeh's official spokesman, Ghazi Hamad, said that Hamas played a central role in freeing Johnston using a variety of efforts.

Fatwa

The PRC's spokesman, Abu Mujahid, told Reuters that a fatwa issued by Sheikh Suleiman al-Daya was the critical turning point.

"The sheikh issued the fatwa to both sides urging the release of the British journalist. The two sides agreed and Alan Johnston was released without conditions," he said, adding no ransom had been paid.

Soon after his release, Johnston told the BBC that it was "fantastic" and "indescribably good" to be free after an "appalling experience," that was "quite terrifying at times".

Hamas' efforts

In a press conference, standing next to Johnston and senior Hamas leaders, Ismail Haniyeh said: "We could not have had this meeting if great efforts were not made over months starting with the government, then the Hamas leadership inside Palestine and abroad. The ministry of interior, the Executive Force, the Al-Qassam Brigades [Hamas' armed wing], and the Resistance Committees engaged in deep dialogue and consultations which led to this end."

Haniyeh added, "The office of the prime minister led by Ghazi Hamad conducted secret negotiations to release Johnston."

Haniyeh refused to reveal the details of the deal.

He affirmed that Johnston's release was based on religious and moral humanitarian motives, stressing the positive role Johnston used to play in covering the events in the Gaza Strip, and he called him a friend of the Palestinian people.

Appearing next to Ismail Haniyeh, Johnston thanked everyone who had worked for his release, particularly Haniyeh and the Hamas movement. He also expressed his gratitude for Palestinian support, both in Gaza and Ramallah. He was "seriously grateful", he told the BBC.

The BBC added that Johnston credited Hamas' seizure of power in Gaza as a contributing factor to his release.

"The kidnappers seemed very comfortable and very secure in their operation until... a few weeks ago, when Hamas took charge of the security operation here," he said.

Executive Force takes credit

The Executive Force, an armed group in Gaza loyal to Hamas, also took credit for Johnston's release. They said he had been held by the strong Dughmosh family for the last 4 months.

"Johnston was freed after the Executive Force besieged the place where he was detained," the EF said in a statement. "He was handed over under pressure from the Executive Force, yet not a single drop of blood was spilt."

An "appalling" and "terrifying" experience

Johnston told the BBC that his captivity had been an "appalling experience," that was "quite terrifying at times".

"I literally dreamt many times of being free and always woke up back in that room," he told the BBC.

Johnston, 45, said that occasionally during his captivity "it was hard to imagine normal life again."

"It is great to be free after 16 weeks in a closed and dark cell which turned horrible at time, and I did not know when my suffering would come to an end," he told the press.

The British journalist added that he was moved twice during his captivity. He also said that he was not tortured by his captors. However, he added that he had lost weight and his hair had grown more than normal.

Talking to the BBC, he also paid credit to the worldwide appeals calling for his release. He reported that he had a radio with him throughout his captivity and hearing the messages of support gave him a "psychological boost."

He told the BBC that he had managed to speak over the phone to his father in Scotland and to his Jerusalem bureau chief.

Alan Johnston was kidnapped by masked gunmen in the Gaza Strip on 12 March. No news was heard of him until early May when the Army of Islam claimed responsibility for his capture, demanding that all Muslim prisoners detained in the UK be released. In particular they called for the release of Abu Qatada, a Palestinian-born Islamic cleric who is suspected of links with Al-Qaeda and is held by the UK government on terrorism charges.

Ten days ago, the Army of Islam issued a second video of Johnston, in which he was wearing an explosive vest around his torso. In the tape, Johnston reported that his captors had said they would detonate the vest if force was used to try to free him.

**Last update: 09:55, 4 July

 

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