'Released Iranian abductees in Turkey'
Five Iranian engineers who had been kidnapped by armed terrorists in Syria on December 21, 2011, near the restive city of Homs, have reportedly been freed and are now in Turkey, Press TV reports.
An Iranian diplomat in Turkey told Press TV’s correspondent on Thursday that unconfirmed information obtained by Iran's embassy in Ankara shows that five Iranian engineers who had been abducted by Syrian opposition forces are now in Turkey’s southern city of Hatay.
The source, who asked not to be named, added that the Iranian embassy obtained the information through contacts with local officials in the Turkish city.
The source, however, noted that the information is unofficial and Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has not confirmed the report yet.
He stressed that the Iranian embassy is closely following up on the story to obtain details about the whereabouts of the Iranians and to send them to their home country as soon as possible.
On Wednesday, December 21, 2011, five Iranian electrical engineers were kidnapped by unknown gunmen when they were on their way to a power plant in the restive Syrian city of Homs.
The technicians were involved in building the city's 450-MW Jandar power plant over the past two years.
On December 26, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem assured his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi that Damascus would do its best to locate the kidnapped Iranians in the shortest possible time and return them to their families.
Syria has been the scene of unrest since mid-March, 2011.
The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing the protesters. But Damascus blames ''outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups'' for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
An Iranian diplomat in Turkey told Press TV’s correspondent on Thursday that unconfirmed information obtained by Iran's embassy in Ankara shows that five Iranian engineers who had been abducted by Syrian opposition forces are now in Turkey’s southern city of Hatay.
The source, who asked not to be named, added that the Iranian embassy obtained the information through contacts with local officials in the Turkish city.
The source, however, noted that the information is unofficial and Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has not confirmed the report yet.
He stressed that the Iranian embassy is closely following up on the story to obtain details about the whereabouts of the Iranians and to send them to their home country as soon as possible.
On Wednesday, December 21, 2011, five Iranian electrical engineers were kidnapped by unknown gunmen when they were on their way to a power plant in the restive Syrian city of Homs.
The technicians were involved in building the city's 450-MW Jandar power plant over the past two years.
On December 26, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem assured his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi that Damascus would do its best to locate the kidnapped Iranians in the shortest possible time and return them to their families.
Syria has been the scene of unrest since mid-March, 2011.
The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing the protesters. But Damascus blames ''outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups'' for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.