Alan Johnston
Alan Graham Johnston (born 17 May 1962) is a British journalist working for the BBC. He has been the BBC's correspondent in Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, the Gaza Strip and Italy. He is based in London.
Johnston was kidnapped by a group of Palestinian militants on 12 March 2007, and released nearly four months later on 4 July, after Hamas' seizure of control in Gaza.
Early life
Johnston was born in Lindi, Tanganyika (present-day Tanzania), to Scottish parents.
Education
Johnston was educated at the Dollar Academy, an independent school which is said to be the oldest co-educational day and boarding school in the world, in the small town of Dollar in Clackmannanshire in central Scotland, followed by the University of Dundee, where he graduated with an MA in English and politics. He also completed a diploma in Journalism Studies from Cardiff University.
Career
Johnston joined the BBC in 1991, and has spent eight years as a correspondent for them, including in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, as well as Kabul, Afghanistan. He was in Kabul when Afghanistan was still under the control of the Taliban. He was due to be the BBC's full-time correspondent in Gaza until 1 April 2007, and at the time of his kidnapping was the only foreign reporter with a major Western media organisation to still be based in the city.
