Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has discussed ways to save 11 kidnapped Shiite pilgrims by Syrian opposition with his Lebanese counterpart, Najib Mikati, with Turkey pledging to continue its efforts to rescue the Lebanese citizens, Today's Zaman reported.
The Lebanese men were on their way back from a pilgrimage in Iran on May 22 when gunmen intercepted their buses in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo.
Since then, no one has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. There were reports last Friday that the hostages were about to be released thanks to Turkey's facilitation, prompting a rush on the airport by family members. But the men never arrived, and it became clear the release plans went awry.
One opposition figure who said he spoke to the kidnappers told The Associated Press that the hostage takers decided not to release the men after Syrian forces began attacking areas held by opposition fighters in Aleppo. Now, he said, the kidnappers are demanding Syrian authorities release 500 opposition detainees, including Lt. Col. Hussein Harmoush, one of the first officers to defect after the uprising began. Harmoush was later arrested by authorities during a special operation.
Lebanese officials and Syrian activists have said the men are being held in an area near the Turkish border, but there is little credible information about their fate. Shiite leaders in Lebanon have scrambled to deny various rumors that might aggravate the situation - including reports that one of the hostages is related to Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah.
Hezbollah is a staunch ally of the Syrian regime, where a predominantly Sunni uprising is trying to oust the Assad family dynasty. The families of the kidnapped Shiites blame Syria's Sunni rebels for abducting the men.
The case has the potential to inflame sectarian tensions in Lebanon and trigger retaliatory attacks against tens of thousands of Syrians nationals now in Lebanon. The overwhelming majority of opposition fighting Assad's regime are Sunni Muslims, while Assad and the ruling elite in Syria belong to the tiny Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.
Syrian opposition said on Thursday that they were holding the pilgrims, and accused some of the hostages of opposing their revolution against Assad. They added they would not start negotiations for the release of the hostages until Nasrallah apologized for a recent speech.
A joint written statement released by the Turkish Prime Ministry said Erdogan told Mikati that Turkey will continue to put efforts to help rescue the kidnapped Lebanese citizens.
Mikati replied to Erdogan that this issue is urgent and "demanded Turkey's pleasing efforts to continue" in this regard.
The statement came after Erdogan and Mikati had detailed talks on bilateral relations and regional affairs. Both leaders reaffirmed their will to improve their relations, the statement added.
Erdogan stressed how Turkey attaches importance to Lebanon's independence, sovereignty and political stability, adding that responsible approach from all sides for national peace and stability in Lebanon will be supported by Turkey.
Lebanon is a neighbor to Syria where the crisis already has spilled across the border into the country over the past three weeks, sparking deadly violence in a country that remains deeply divided over the 15-month-old uprising against Assad.
But the Shiites' abduction is potentially explosive, in part because it enflames Lebanon's fragile Sunni-Shiite fault line.
Recent clashes between Alawites and anti-Assad Lebanese Sunni groups in Lebanon's second largest city of Tripoli killed eight people earlier this month.
The United Nations says Assad's forces have killed more than 9,000 people since the start of the uprising, inspired by protests against autocratic leaders across the Arab world. Activists put this number at 13,000. Syria blames "terrorists" for the violence and says 2,600 soldiers and police have been killed.
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