BBC man marks 100 days in Gaza captivity

GAZA CITY:  Hamas said on Wednesday it was working to secure the release of BBC journalist Alan Johnston, who has now been held hostage for 100 days by Palestinian extremists in the Gaza Strip.   

The Islamist movement, which has controlled Gaza for a week after routing Palestinian security forces in deadly battles, recently raised hopes that Johnston could be released quickly but his fate remains uncertain.   

Colleagues of the 45-year-old British journalist are holding vigils around the world to mark the 100 days, by far the longest period a Westerner has been held in the chaotic Palestinian territory.   

"We are following the case of the journalist Alan Johnston very intensively and a big effort is being made to ensure he is released. We are trying to use all possible ways to end this matter," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.   

The movement said it wanted to find a solution that would not endanger Johnston's life, saying it would be wrong to rush in, following a death threat from his captors. "Hamas wants to find the right mechanism to release him in order to protect his life. It is very important for us to keep him safe. To rush, would be wrong," said another spokesman Fawzi Barhum.   

Masked gunmen on Wednesday shot dead a member of the Dogmush clan in broad daylight in Gaza City, medical sources said. Members of the Dogmush family in 2006 formed the Army of Islam, the radical group which claims to be holding Johnston.   

The Foreign Press Association in Israel urged members in Gaza to "exercise extreme caution particularly in light of information that a member of one of the Gaza clans widely suspected of involvement in kidnapping foreigners was killed today sparking fears of reprisals that might target foreigners."   

There has been no word on the journalist's condition since the radical fringe group claiming his abduction released an undated video on June 1, showing a pale Johnston saying he had been well treated and well fed.   

The BBC was to hold vigils around the world calling for the release of the award-winning reporter, who was the only Western journalist left permanently in the increasingly lawless territory when he was seized on March 12. Johnston's parents, Graham and Margaret, were to be joined by villagers at their home in Scotland to release 100 balloons at 2:15 pm (1315 GMT) -- the exact time he was kidnapped at gunpoint while driving home in Gaza City.   

BBC colleagues were to hold a vigil, with offices in Washington, New York, Brussels, Jerusalem and Kabul taking part.    "On the 100th day, we are more steadfast in our support for Alan than ever and our thoughts are always with his family," said the director of BBC News, Helen Boaden.   

Johnston, an experienced reporter who had been based in Gaza for three years, has been held for far longer than any other Western hostage in the Gaza Strip, where a string of foreign kidnappings have been resolved within days.    His self-declared captors, the Army of Islam, are demanding the release of a Palestinian-born cleric, once labelled Al-Qaeda's spiritual leader in Europe, Abu Qatada, who is being held in Britain.   

"If we do not reach an agreement and the situation worsens for us, we will have to turn to God and have no choice but to slit the throat of the journalist," a masked spokesman for the group said on Sunday.   

Johnston's plight has sparked rallies and messages of support from all over the world and an online petition calling for his release has been signed by more than 170,000 people.