Kidnappers move 11 pilgrims for ‘security reasons’

The Lebanese hostages held by Syrian rebels were moved for security reasons but are still in the Aleppo district of Izaaz, according to the ambassador of the International Organization for Human Rights. Speaking to The Daily Star Sunday, Ali Akil Khalil said the head of the captors informed him that they moved the hostages from the house where they had been kept. “He said that they are still in Izaaz but that they were moved to another place for security reasons,” said Khalil. Khalil said he telephoned Abu Ibrahim, the head of the captors, Saturday after receiving phone calls from the relatives of the kidnapped asking about media reports of the move. The 11 men were kidnapped in May in Izaaz shortly after crossing from Turkey. They were heading back to Lebanon after a pilgrimage in Iran. The rebels have refused to negotiate their release with the Lebanese government, instead asking to hold talks with Future Movement MP Oqab Sakr or Col. Wissam Hasan, the head of the Internal Security Forces Information Branch. Reporters and some of the pilgrims’ relatives visited the men last week with the rebels’ permission. The hostages were living in a house and appeared in good health in the footage broadcast. Khalil, who arrived in Lebanon Saturday after spending two days with the kidnapped, said he believed Turkey could play an effective role in securing the release of the captives. “The Turks provided them [the rebels] with flour and gas when I was with them,” he said. “If they can do that, why can’t they make them release the 11?” Last week, relatives of the kidnapped staged a protest near Turkey’s Embassy in Lebanon, warning that Turkish nationals in Lebanon could be kidnapped if Ankara refuses to work for the pilgrims’ release. Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour, who flew Sunday to Saudi Arabia to attend the Muslim Summit in Jeddah, said he would discuss the case on the sidelines of the event. “Of course we will discuss this issue on the sidelines of the conference with relevant ministers and officials of relevant states,” Mansour told reporters prior to his departure. The Daily Star