Three Spanish Journalists Kidnapped In Syria Released
MEP: Three Spanish journalists kidnapped in Syria last year, have been released on Saturday and are due to fly home from Turkey, the Spanish government said.
Antonio Pampliega, Jose Manuel Lopez and Angel Sastre disappeared from the northern city of Aleppo 10 months ago.
Acting Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria has spoken to the trio over the phone. Their health condition is good.
A source close to the Spanish government told AFP that the men were in Turkey waiting for their flight back to Spain. “They are in Turkey and are expected to return home on Sunday morning,” the source said.
No details were immediately available on how the three were released, but Qatar said it had helped.
Qatar’s state news agency said Assistant Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Martian had received a phone call from Spain’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ignacio Iapanaz Rebeo, in which he “thanked the State of Qatar for its efforts in the release of three Spanish prisoners who had been detained in Syria”. Reuters reported.
It is not yet clear who kidnapped Mr Pampliega, Mr Lopez and Mr Sastre. However, Spanish media outlets, including El Pais, reported that they were held by the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front terror group.
According to Reporters Without Borders, Syria has become one of most dangerous countries in the world for journalists since the fighting broke out.
