Committee of Lebanese Hostages in Syria: Turkey Only Mediator

Local Editor

The ministerial committee, tasked with following up the case of Lebanese hostages in Syria, held Monday a meeting at the Grand Serail, under the chairmanship of Labor Minister Salim Jreissati, in presence of Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi, and Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour.

After the meeting, Jreissati confirmed that "the meeting was set two weeks ago, regardless of the sit-in staged by the abductees' relatives."
"The committee was the sole instance tasked with communicating with the official side capable of addressing the abductees' issue, namely the Turkish authorities," the minister clarified.
In parallel, he urged Turkey to carry on efforts to release the Lebanese abductees, stressing that Turkey was the sole mediator on this level.
"Just like we worked with the Turkish authorities to release the two Turks in Lebanon, what is required is for Turkey to do the same as a state," Jreissati said.

For his part, Charbel, revealed that Turkish officials attributed the delay in the release of the nine kidnapped Lebanese to political reasons.
"The issue has been delayed and we don't know the reason behind that. They [Turkish officials] say it is for political reasons or some complications," he said.

Meanwhile, Mansour emphasized the strong ties between Lebanon and Turkey, saying the latter could influence the Syrian opposition to release the Lebanese hostages.
"Regardless of the reasons that have prevented the release of the hostages, we still rely heavily on Turkey in this matter due to its ties with the Syrian opposition on the ground," he said.
The FM also mentioned that "Turkey continues its efforts and is able to influence them."

On another level, Qortbawi assured that Lebanon has no Syrian prisoners of conscience.
"There are no prisoners of conscience and that kind of talk is unacceptable and should not be disseminated in the media," he said, adding that Syrian detainees in Lebanon were held for judicial reasons.
He further reiterated that "every person is free to give their opinion and have a certain belief in Lebanon."


Source: News agencies, Edited by moqawama.org