British Journalist Paul Martin was arrested by Hamas after he showed up at the trial of an Abu Rish Brigade member accused of providing info to Israel.
According to AP, Martin came to show support because he had interviewed the defendant a few weeks ago.
I initially assumed Martin was a moonbat film maker in over his head, but the Times of London sheds more light on his professional background. It also turns out (via Solomonia) that Martin was arrested by Hamas before.
Martin's situation doesn't begin to compare to the kidnap of BBC journalist Alan Johnston in 2007.
- Johnston was kidnapped and held by a murky group calling itself the Army of Islam, giving Hamas a degree of plausible deniability. Martin was arrested by Hamas police on orders from a Hamas judge.
- Johnston was a well-known reporter working for one of the world's largest news services. The BBC rallied public support for Johnston and maintained pressure on the Islamists. Martin is less-known co-owner of a company that supplies video footage to news organizations. The company, World News & Features, will have little leverage with Hamas.
- Johnston was abducted when Hamas was still consolidating its hold over Gaza. Martin was arrested by a de facto government that will make no move compromising it's "authority" over Gaza.
Obtaining a quick release for Martin without appearing to recognize Hamas will be tricky. Can the UK Foreign Office pull that off?
Of course, Martin's situation has to be seen in the context of issues of press freedom in Gaza and the West Bank I blogged last week. In those cases, the problems were limited to Palestinian journos. Martin's arrest is a clear signal that foreign correspondents are losing room to maneuver too.
