Vittorio Arrigoni
| Vittorio Arrigoni | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
4 February 1975 Besana in Brianza |
| Disappeared | April 14, 2011 (aged 36) Gaza |
| Died | 15 April 2011 (aged 36) Gaza Strip |
| Cause of death | Murdered by strangling by Jahafil Al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad fi Filastin |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Occupation | International Solidarity Movement activist, journalist, blogger |
 "Vittorio Arrigoni...a pro-Palestinian activist from Italy, received a passport from Ismail Haniya, head of Hamas's government in Gaza, in 2008."—The New York Times
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Vittorio Arrigoni (4 February 1975 – 15 April 2011) was an Italian reporter, writer, pacifist and activist. Arrigoni worked with the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement (ISM) in the Gaza Strip, from 2008 until his death. Arrigoni maintained a website, Guerrilla Radio, and published a book of his experiences in Gaza during the 2008–09 Gaza War between Hamas and Israel. Arrigoni was the first foreigner kidnapped in Gaza since BBC journalist Alan Johnston's abduction in 2007. The murder was condemned by various Palestinian factions.
A Hamas court in Gaza convicted four Salafist extremists on charges of kidnapping and murdering Arrigoni in September 2012. Mahmoud al-Salfiti, 28, and Tamer al-Hasasna, 27, were sentenced to life imprisonment, with hard labour. On 19 February 2013 a Gaza military court reduced the sentences of the two from life to 15 years. "We asked in our appeal for the conviction for murder and abduction to be dropped to only abduction," their lawyer Mohammed Zaqut said. 24-year-old Khader Jram was given a 10-year sentence. Amer Abu Ghouleh, 23, was given a prison term of one year for sheltering fugitives.
Arrigoni was born in the town of Besana in Brianza, near Monza, on 4 February 1975. He claimed that it was in his blood to fight for freedom as his grandfathers fought against the former fascist regime in Italy. He had the Arabic word for resistance (muqawama) tattooed on his right arm. Once he passed his maturità exams in Italy, he left his hometown of Bulciago, a small village near lake Como, and began working as a volunteer around the world (East Europe, South America, Africa and Middle East). In 2002, he visited Jerusalem which according to his mother was the "moment he understood his work would be concentrated there." His mother, Egidia Beretta, is the mayor of Bulciago.
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