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Two Simonas' release shrouded in mystery
FLASHBACK: Confusion over Italian hostages: Two seperate groups claim beheading
Confusion surrounds how and where Simona Pari and Simona Torretta were released. Images showing the women being handed over to the Red Cross were broadcast by Al Jazeera but the TV channel says it did not film them. Nor is it clear where the pictures were shot.
Details about a possible ransom also remain sketchy. A Kuwaiti newspaper has reported that one million dollars were paid to secure freedom for the women but the Italian government denies that. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said: "I would like to thank one person in particular. I believe the girls owe their lives to him. That person is Gianni Letta, the undersecretary of the government. He led the negotiations and he never stopped working."
Berlusconi revealed that at least 16 different negotiating sessions had been held, some of them outside Iraq. If a ransom payment is confirmed, it would suggest the captors were simply a criminal gang and not Islamic extremists.
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