Syria rebels kidnap 13 Lebanese Shi'ites
- 12 years ago
Tensions on the streets of Beirut after family members say Syrian rebels kidnapped at least 13 Lebanese Shi'ite men in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.
They say a bus carrying the men was stopped by the Free Syrian Army as it crossed the Turkish border to Syria on the way back from a pilgrimage in Iran.
Now they are calling for their release
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) RELATIVE OF LEBANESE MAN SAID TO BE KIDNAPPED IN SYRIA, SAYING:
"We call on the Syrian army and the officials for their release. These people were going for a pilgrimage. We call on them to release them. We have always been one people who love each other, so please release these men.''
The anger spilled into the night.
The kidnappings underscores how far Syria is from finding a way out of the chaos and bloodshed that has marked the uprising against Assad. A U.N. peace plan hopes to resolve the situation in Syria through talks based on a ceasefire -- that has yet to take hold.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters
They say a bus carrying the men was stopped by the Free Syrian Army as it crossed the Turkish border to Syria on the way back from a pilgrimage in Iran.
Now they are calling for their release
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) RELATIVE OF LEBANESE MAN SAID TO BE KIDNAPPED IN SYRIA, SAYING:
"We call on the Syrian army and the officials for their release. These people were going for a pilgrimage. We call on them to release them. We have always been one people who love each other, so please release these men.''
The anger spilled into the night.
The kidnappings underscores how far Syria is from finding a way out of the chaos and bloodshed that has marked the uprising against Assad. A U.N. peace plan hopes to resolve the situation in Syria through talks based on a ceasefire -- that has yet to take hold.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters