Italy hits back at US report on death of agent

ROME - Italy has hit back at an American report clearing US troops who shot and killed the chief of Italian military intelligence in Baghdad after he had secured the release of a hostage in the Iraqi capital.

A separate Italian report on the affair, released last night, appeared to cast doubt on the reliability of the US investigation into the death of Nicola Calipari, re-opening the argument between Washington and Rome over the circumstances of his killing.

Italy has refused to accept the US findings that cleared American troops of wrongdoing in the death of Mr Calipari, gunned down in a car at a checkpoint in Baghdad on March 4 as he was escorting an Italian hostage Giuliana Sgrena to Baghdad airport and freedom.

Italy said the fatal shooting was not intentional but was caused by inexperienced and nervous US soldiers manning a poorly organised checkpoint.

Italy took issue with a US report released on Saturday, notably that there was poor communication between the Italians and the US forces in the hours before the March shooting.

"It is likely that tension.... inexperience and stress led some of the US troops to react instinctively and with little control," the Italian report said.

The US report put much of the blame on Italy for the friendly fire incident, saying Italian agents in Baghdad failed to communicate to US officials their plans to take freed hostage Giuliana Sgrena to the Baghdad airport.

Rome denied that, saying US authorities were "indisputably" aware of the presence of Calipari and a second Italian agent in Baghdad even if "it is likely that they were not aware of the details of their mission".

Rome said there was no warning signs that a military road block was ahead on the road to Baghdad airport, but it said there was no reason to suppose the car taking Calipari and the hostage to freedom had been deliberately targeted.

"This document has only one objective," said a source close to the Italian report, "to put in evidence simply what emerges from the facts. And that is that Calipari was killed through an unjustified reaction by the US patrol. To sum up, an error."

Italy's parliamentary Speaker, Pierferdinando Casini, said the Italian enquiry was undertaken to defend national honour and in the spirit of the long friendship between Rome and Washington. But it was unclear what further steps the Government of Silvio Berlusconi, the Prime Minister who remains a close friend of US President Bush, might take to force the Americans to retract their version, which cleared US soldiers involved in the incident of any wrongdoing.

"Parliament will examine the conclusions which our Government reached in the name of truth, clarity and reciprocal loyalty," Signor Casini said during ceremonies held at the port of Nettuno to mark the anniversary of the end of the Second World War, a setting recalling the American-led liberation of Italy.

Italy's Defence Minister, Antonio Martino, said the worsening stand-off over the investigation would "certainly not" damage relations permanently between Rome and Washington.

His words were echoed by the US Ambassador to Italy, Mel Sembler. Calipari was "a hero also for the United States. We have lost a friend," he continued, "but this affair will not have repercussions on the relationship between Italy and the USA. Relations between the two countries are strong and will remain strong."

The Italian document reportedly accuses the US military of "tampering with the incident scene" and removing evidence. Rome refused to agree conclusions with the United States after the joint enquiry.

Italian media said a reconstruction of events showed that a three-second warning given by the US troops was not enough time for the car to stop.

"The main points on which it is not possible to agree include the sequence of events, the rules of engagement and the co-ordination with the competent authorities in Iraq," said a spokesman for the Italian foreign ministry.

The American report brought renewed calls by Roberto Calderoli, a Government Minister from the Northern League party, for Italy to speed up withdrawal of its 3,000 troops based in Iraq.

- INDEPENDENT and REUTERS