The militants who killed the Italian hostage demanded the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq and threatened to kill three other hostages, the Arab TV network Al-Jazeera reported.
The killing could further heighten fears among international aid workers, contractors and journalists, some of whom are already restricting their activities in the country.
The Italian ambassador to Qatar, where the network is based, watched the video and confirmed the man killed was Fabrizio Quattrocchi, who had been kidnapped, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.
Frattini said the government would do “what is possible and impossible” to free the remaining three.
