Journalists released in Afghanistan

(Tell us about the CBC reporter, how and when she was abducted and what happened to her.) She was visiting a refugee camp on the western outskirts of Kabul, and on October 12th she was grabbed by gunmen, put into a van and disappeared. She resurfaced on Saturday when she was brought back to the Canadian embassy. In between is still sort of a mystery. The formal explanation was that her release was brokered by tribal elders, but that usually means that there was some kind of deal and we’re trying to still find out the details. (How is she doing now?) there was a videotape being released of her arriving in Kabul and she seemed remarkably lucid and aware, bright-eyed. (Here’s a clip of that video. [Video clip]. The conditions in which she was kept, she was blind folded, her eyes and feet bound at times, it was obviously difficult for her. Why is she an attractive target?) Afghan businessmen are far and away the most attractive target, and they are because they can be ransomed off very quietly because most Afghans don’t want to get the police involved and also for fear of complication. So she was not an attractive target and apparently the bandits who kidnapped her became afraid of what they got themselves into. (Given what’s happened to this journalist, do you feel anymore vulnerable?) I’ve been steadily more vulnerable every year.