02 December 2005 :
it was reported that the Italian embassy in Kabul may ask for the commutation into life imprisonment of the death sentences handed down to brothers Zar Jan and Abdul Wahid for the murders of Maria Grazia Catulli and three other journalists in November 2001.Prior to putting the request into motion, the embassy was first expecting official confirmation by the Afghan authorities that the death sentences had been handed down by a court of first instance.
A third man involved in the case, Reza Khan, had been sentenced to death in Kabul on November 20, 2004.
Maria Grazia Catuli’s family have expressed their opposition to the death penalty asking that those responsible for the murders be sentenced to terms imprisonment.
(Sources: APcom, 30/11/2005)