One of Ours

...Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said a video recording of the killing showed that Quattrocchi was hooded when his kidnappers put a gun to his head.
"When the murderers were pointing a pistol at him, this man tried to take off his hood and shouted: 'Now I'm going to show you how an Italian dies'. And they killed him," Frattini said.

"He died a hero," he added...

..."It wouldn't just be vile, it would also damage us if we pulled out (of Iraq) with the job half done. We cannot give in," Defence Minister Antonio Martino told reporters.

Mainstream opposition leaders, many of them deeply critical of Berlusconi's unwavering support for U.S. President George W. Bush during the Iraq conflict, also ruled out negotiations.

"The vile blackmail by a band of criminal kidnappers must not be given the dignity of a political response. Italy is and must remain unified and together," said Francesco Rutelli, leader of a centre-left opposition group, the Daisy party...