So what would the Italians have done ?

[youngmafbog]

Despite the best and brave efforst of the SBS and the Nigerian specials forces unfortunately the hostages were murdered. If nothing was done it is pretty certain that this would have been their fate anyway so an attempt had to be made.

The Italians are bleating about not being told, but what would they have done? Changed sides perhaps or maybe invited the kidnappers to a bunga bunga party or offered them some dodgy bonds, but lets face it the Italians dont really have much going for them in the face of adversity (well not since the Roman invasions)

[Gromit]

I am sure we would not be happy if the Italian Special Services had cocked up and a British citizen died as a result.

We did our best and unfortunately it was not good enough in this case.

So a bit of foreigner bashing will have to do to hide our embarrassment.

[rojash]

You're doing it again...

[jno]

the Italians would have negotiated. They have done this with previous hostages, and they say it works.

[LazyGun]

Well, we do not know the precise circumstances, do we? We are told the hostages were about to be moved, possibly executed, and that with intelligence gathered, there existed a "window of opportunity". David Cameron authorised the strike, according to his own press briefing, and theNigerian govt forces, with some assistance fom UK forcesattacked - and the mission to rescue the hostages alive patently failed.

We still know too little about the precise circumstances to offer any meaningful, informed comment. The hostages may have been killed during the firefight, or even before the attach was launched.l

It is entirely predictable that the Italian media and rent a quote types have responded as they have.Imagine for a moment, if this had been an Italian / Nigerian joint mission, just imagine what the press and other quoteheads would have said!

I dont think that, just because we have had some negative comments from the Italian media, it is necessary to get all defensively jingoistic about it.That kind of response is unhelpful and unnecessary, and rather obscures the central fact that 2 hostages were murdered.

[Snafu03]

well they had a year to get their script together! not forthcoming was it.

[Zeuhl]

Agree with lazygun

Not letting the Italians know beforehand was a break in protocol that would have been overlooked if all had gone well.

Sadly it didn't.

[sandyRoe]

They couldn't have made a worse hand of it than the combined Nigerian-British operation did.

[Zeuhl]

It would have gone OK but the Nigerians emailed the Kidnappers asking for their bank details

[anotheoldgit]

Zeuhl

/// It would have gone OK but the Nigerians emailed the Kidnappers asking for their bank details ///

Oh, and I wonder what the response would have been if I had happened to make such an insensitive comment?

Are you suggesting that all Nigerians are crooks? This was both insensitive and racist.

Double standards come to mind.

[Zeuhl]

<<Double standards come to mind>>

That must be because you are either self-obsessed, neurotic, lack a sense of humour or simply don't understand what 'racist' means.

First; Nigerian is not a race it is a nationality that encompasses a great many ethnic groups. So using a common (not unfounded) notion that email scams are run by Nigerians is an example of a national stereotype - not a racist remark.

Clearly it was in the context of a joke. If I have ever pulled you up by criticising one of your racist opinions when you were actually only joking then I apologise for not spotting that.

But it's good to see you are consistent in displaying that in almost any thread on any subject, the subject you are most interested in is -

yourself
.

[Lonnie]

Anyone remember the American invasion of Grenada?, the Island is, was in the British Commonwealth, therefore it's head of state is the Queen. The British Goverment wasn't notified beforehand.

In my books, it's just the same, not notifying a foreign goverment of impending action cuts out the a lot risk of the opposing 'forces' finding out about it.

[DTCwordfan]

Their ship or plane probably would have turned over........I am not surprised they weren't told - could you expect Silvio's escorts and cohorts to remain stumm and not take a backhander......

[Zeuhl]

ah yes ... Grenada

That was when the Americans invaded and went to the Governor General's mansion to find Sir Paul Scoon.

They assumed he would be anglo-saxon and colonial and were somewhat taken aback when the afro-caribbean who they thought was a house servant turned out to be Sir Paul.

[ludwig]

I love the way it's a Nigerian led operation because it went wrong.

If they'd been resucued it would have been our glorious SBS boys getting the job done with no mention of Nigerians at all.

[anotheoldgit]

Zeuhl

Hit a raw nerve did we?

/// Nigerian is not a race it is a nationality ///

Perhaps you and others will remember this when yourself and others accuse me of racism, when I dare to criticise another nationality.