BRITIAN: BBC reporter's family makes appeal

Militants claim they have killed Alan Johnston, abducted in March

The Daily Star
Tuesday, April 17, 2007

London --- The family of a British journalist kidnapped in the Gaza Strip pleaded yesterday for his captors to "end this ordeal" following unconfirmed reports he had been killed.

The British Broadcasting Corp. said it could not confirm the claim by a previously unknown Palestinian group that said it had killed Alan Johnston, the BBC's Gaza correspondent.

Johnston, 44, was abducted by gunmen after leaving his office in the coastal Palestinian territory on March 12. On Sunday, a previously unknown group, "The Brigades of Tawheed and Jihad," said it had killed Johnston to support demands for the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Palestinian officials said they could not confirm the claim.

Britain's Foreign Office said it was "urgently" investigating the reports.

Date Posted: 4/17/2007