Lebanon to resume hostage negotiations

Lebanon’s Interior Minister Marwan Charbel is expected to discuss the release of nine Lebanese Shiite citizens kidnapped in Syria last year, during a state visit to Turkey, political sources have claimed. Charbel will be accompanied by Lebanese Director of Public Security, General Abbas Ibrahim, who has previously been involved in negotiations for a hostage swap. A series of meetings have been scheduled between the Lebanese officials and members of the Turkish government. Sources told Arabstoday that Lebanese officials would discuss the Syrian kidnappers proposal of exchanging the abductees for female detainees held by the Syrian regime. The Syrian authorities have denied that the women named by the kidnappers are currently detained in Syrian prisons. The Syrian Ambassador to Beirut Ali Abdel Karim Ali discussed the matter with Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour. After the meeting, Ali explained that the duo also talked about stolen Syrian monuments. The diplomat said that the foreign minister reiterated cooperation between security institutions to restore Syrian landmarks and return the monuments to Syria. The Syrian official said his country would support efforts to secure the release of the Lebanese hostages. He lamented the fact that militants from neighbouring countries are now entering Syrian territory to fight against the regime, adding that the conflict is also having a severe impact on Lebanon. Eleven Lebanese Shiites were captured by Syrian rebels in Aleppo, north Syria, on May 22, 2012, while on their way back from a religious pilgrimage in Iran. Two of the pilgrims have since been released.