ROME - Nicola Calipari, whose death at the hands of Italy's US allies as he rescued an Italian hostage in Iraq sparked a diplomatic incident, has posthumously become the country's discreet and affable hero.
Born June 23, 1953 in the southern Calabria region, Calipari entered the Italian police force in the northern port of Genoa after gaining a degree in law, and quickly became a member of the elite rapid reaction force.
After his stint in Genoa he returned to Cosenza in Calabria where he was appointed head of the city's rapid reaction unit in the early 1980s.
He continued his police career in the Italian capital becoming the Rome unit's number two and then head of the criminal police in Lazio, the region around Rome.
Calipari was later tasked with heading the police department established to crack down on organized crime, kidnappings and other serious crimes.
In 2002, the military intelligence agency SISMI asked Calipari to head its foreign operations department.
In this position he was in charge of negotiating the release of Italy's hostages in Iraq, succeeding in all but two cases.
Two Italian hostages were killed in the war-ravaged country following its invasion by US-led forces in 2003 but six others were freed, including journalist Giuliana Sgrena in whose arms Calipari died late Friday after their car was sprayed by US gunfire.
Calipari and two other Italian agents were escorting Sgrena to Baghdad when the US patrol opened fire near the airport. Italy voiced its outrage at the incident, and US President George W. Bush has promised an inquiry.
He is survived by his wife, a 19-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old son.
03/07/2005 11:32 GMT