ITALIAN prosecutors want US troops in Baghdad to hand over the car ...Oh yeah as if

The car "riddled with 400 rounds fired by US troops"
(if you look REALLY HARD im sure you can see the damage)

Italy puts pressure on Bush
By Natasha Bita in Florence
March 12, 2005
From:
The Australian

ITALIAN prosecutors want US troops in Baghdad to hand over the car and satellite phones used by the secret agent killed by US soldiers while escorting a freed hostage to safety this week.
As Italy and the US launched inquiries into the attack on the hostage rescue mission, Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi wrote to his US counterpart, George W. Bush, insisting on "transparency" by US military officials investigating the attack.
"Dear Mr President, Dear George," the letter said.
"I have taken note of your assurance that the US will launch an exhaustive joint inquiry between our two countries so the facts of this tragedy are cleared up in an exhaustive manner.
"This need for transparency and speed is profoundly felt by the people of Italy."
Rome and Washington have blamed each other for the death of Italian intelligence agent Nicola Calipari, who was shot dead by US forces in a hail of gunfire while shielding freed hostage Giuliana Sgrena as he escorted her to Baghdad airport last Saturday.
Ms Sgrena, who was freed after a month in the hands of Iraqi insurgents, and the car's driver, a carabiniere officer, were injured in the attack.
The White House is portraying the shooting as a "tragic accident", claiming the Italians ignored warnings to stop as they sped towards a checkpoint, and failed to inform US officials of their movements.
But the Italian Government insists the agent had alerted US authorities he was on his way to the airport, and says he was fired on without warning as his car drove at 40 km/h with its interior light on.
Fearful the Italian anger over the killing might jeopardise Italy's commitment to keeping its 3000 troops in Iraq, Washington made an unprecedented offer on Wednesday to let an Italian diplomat and military officer take part in its military investigation of the affair in Baghdad.
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld telephoned Italian Defence Minister Antonio Martino yesterday - his second call this week - to express his sympathy over what he described as "the most unfortunate incident" and assure him there would be a thorough investigation.
But the public prosecutor's office in Rome has opened its own inquiry, authorised by the Italian Justice Minister.
The Italian investigators have asked the US military to hand over the car used by Calipari, as well as the mobile phones and satellite phones they believe were taken by the US soldiers after the shooting.
The grey Toyota Corolla was due to be flown to Italy yesterday, L'Unita newspaper reported, but the Italian military plane sent to pick up the car returned empty.
Italy's public broadcaster, RAI, showed photographs of the car after the attack and reported that the US gunshots had been aimed at "passenger level". A US military spokesman had claimed the troops shot at the engine block.
The Italian investigators yesterday re-interviewed Ms Sgrena, who faces surgery on Monday for a bullet wound to her shoulder.
The 56-year-old journalist for the left-wing newspaper Il Manifesto repeated her strong belief that the shooting attack was more like an ambush than an accident.
Italian Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini told parliament this week Italy had never authorised the payment of ransoms to free hostages in Iraq, after Ms Sgrena suggested the Americans might have targeted her because they opposed Italy's practice of negotiating with kidnappers.
Calipari's death has touched a raw nerve in Italy, still resentful over the deaths of 20 people killed when a US marine pilot flew a jet into a cable car at an Italian Alpine ski resort in 1998.
A US court-martial cleared the pilot of homicide but sentenced him to six months' jail for destroying video evidence.
The Italian Government honoured Calipari with a posthumous bravery medal and gave him a state funeral on Monday, after 100,000 Italians queued in the rain to pay homage to their fallen hero as he lay in state.

US unaware of Italian operation
From correspondents in Rome
March 11, 2005
From: Agence France-Presse
News.com.au

THE US was only partially informed about an Italian intelligence operation to free journalist Giuliana Sgrena in Iraq, an Italian general said in a report quoted by La Repubblica newspaper today.
General Mario Marioli, deputy commander of the US-led international coalition force in Iraq, had been asked to prepare an unspecified mission by Italy's top intelligence officer in Iraq, Nicola Calipari, the paper reported.
Mr Calipari agent died under US fire near Baghdad airport on February 4, as he was escorting the freed Italian correspondent to safety.
Quoting from a report by General Marioli to magistrates investigating Mr Calipari's death, La Repubblica said the general provided documents for the intelligence officer and his aide to move around freely.
But he did not know details of their operation in Baghdad, according to his report.
Italian military intelligence informed him late on February 4 that Mr Calipari and his aide would return to Baghdad airport in the company of "an Italian national without a coalition and airport pass".
It was not clear if General Marioli knew at this stage that Sgrena was the unidentified passenger.
General Marioli was tasked with asking US military officials to grant access to the airport to an Italian national traveling with two officials already identified earlier in the day, La Repubblica reported.
"This was an exchange of information between the military," the paper said.
"Marioli had no contact with US intelligence officers."
"The US chain of command had only bits of information.... according to his report General Marioli could not give the Americans the make (a Toyota Corolla), the color (light grey), or the Iraqi license plate," La Repubblica said, quoting from the report.
"He could not do so because he didn't know and because any problem seemed to be resolved after the main checkpoint had been notified."
The car carrying Ms Sgrena and the Italian agents ran into a hail of gunfire by a US patrol around 700m from Baghdad Airport, killing Mr Calipari and wounding the journalist and the other agent.
The patrol had reportedly been tasked with securing the passage of US Ambassador to Iraq John Negroponte.