The brother of Steve Centanni issued a very measured call for kidnapped Fox News corespondents release. In a statement issued through the network, Ken Centanni, expressed gratitude that the kidnappers do not appear to be treating his brother and cameraman Olaf Wiig harshly.
Referring to a video of the two hostages the kidnappers released Wednesday, Centanni says "It shows you have treated them with honor and I thank you. I heard them say you were treating them with respect."
However, he noted that "They have no power.They are not deal makers. They are not politicians and they have no authority.Our brother and his colleague are in Gaza to report your story, nothing more and nothing less. It is in your control to resolve this matter. I respectfully request that you let our brother, Steve and his colleague, come home to their families."
A group calling itself Holy Jihad Brigades claimed responsibility for the kidnappings and have demanding that the United States release "Muslim prisoners" by Saturday. However, they issued no ultimatum and did not specifically threaten reprisals against the journalists. In the tape the journalists looked and sounded surprisingly healthy and not under severe duress.
Time Magazine reports that the Holy Jihad Brigades is a splinter group of the late Yasser Arafat's Fatah, rather than the more militant Hamas, and the kidnapping may be aimed more at discrediting the Palestinian Authority than securing meaningful concessions from the United States.
