Ramallah, 02-01-07: The Palestinian National Initiative (PNI) today issued a strong condemnation of yesterday’s kidnapping of Peruvian photographer, Jaime Razuri.
Razuri had been covering a story for one of the largest French press agencies, Agence France Presse, when he was abducted by four unknown gunmen in Gaza City on Monday.
There has still been no news of the photographer and the identity and motivation of the kidnappers remains unknown despite diplomatic efforts, and investigations by the Palestinian security services to secure his release.
The capture is one of a series of abductions that has taken place in the Gaza Strip in recent months in which foreign aid workers and journalists have been targeted by various armed groups. While all of the hostages have been released unharmed, these actions cause great harm to ability of journalists and photographers to carry out their essential reporting work.
The PNI strongly condemned this latest kidnapping and underlined that the work of such journalists is critical in conveying the grim reality of events on the ground in the Gaza Strip to international audiences. Such actions serve only to harm the Palestinian cause and create further isolation between Palestinians and the outside world.