By Jana El Hassan
BEIRUT: Hussein Ali Omar, the 60-year-old man
released Saturday after being held hostage along with 10 others for three
months by Syrian rebels, speaks without bitterness or pain about his
experience. He describes the head of the group who kidnapped him, Abu Ibrahim,
as a wise man who talks little, but thinks a lot.
“You are lovable, and Mr. Erdogan named you in
person to be freed,” Omar quotes Abu Ibrahim as saying before releasing him.
The other 10 men remain in the custody of the
Syrian rebels.
“I asked him why were we kidnapped, and he
admitted it was a mistake,” says Omar, who arrived Saturday from Turkey at
Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport, where he was welcomed by a massive
crowd including a number of Lebanese officials before heading to his residence
in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Omar refuses to be referred to as a hostage,
insisting he was Abu Ibrahim’s guest.
The 11 men are Lebanese Shiites who were
abducted on May 22 when they crossed into Syria from Turkey on their way back
to Lebanon from a pilgrimage to Iran.
“But I have to say we were never mistreated or
insulted while we were held by the Syrians,” he exclaims.
Voicing hope the other pilgrims will also be
released, Omar denies reports that the men are members of Hezbollah, Syria's
closest ally in the region.
“One of us works painting houses, another in
gardening, and someone else owns a travel agency. We are just regular citizens.
Four of us are from Baalbek and the seven others come from south Lebanon,” says
the freed hostage.
Asked if he has any information about the
potential for the release of the other abducted pilgrims, Omar says “I tried to
call Abu Ibrahim, but his phone was off. But I got a promise of him he will set
the others free, prior to coming back to Lebanon.”
“They will be back in a few days, don’t
worry,” Omar quotes Abu Ibrahim telling him minutes prior to his release.
Omar says the Syrian rebels kept the 11
pilgrims together at all times, but moved them from one area to another for
security.
He also mentions the airstrike by the Syrian
army on Aug. 15 in the Aleppo district of Azaz where they were being held.
“They took us on a tour in Azaz, and we
witnessed the destruction and human tragedy the Syrian people were subject to,
and we support their call for freedom,” says Omar.
This defense of the Syrian revolution from the
hostages is not new. In previous TV appearances of the kidnapped pilgrims, they
have emphasized the same support for the rebels, emphasizing that they have
been treated with respect. It is impossible to know the full circumstances of
such situations, or the treatment the men have received.
Discussing calls he received from major
political figures congratulating him on his safe return home, Omar refrains
from mentioning Hezbollah, and gives assurances that none of the kidnapped has
any involvement with the party, an announcement that the pilgrims might
consider as a safety net for their security.
But Free Syrian Army commander Col. Riad Asaad
claimed Sunday that most of the remaining hostages were members of the
resistance group.
However, with no official signs the release of
the 10 remaining pilgrims is imminent, it is not yet clear if Omar’s release
was merely a move to encourage the release of two Turkish nationals who have
been kidnapped in Lebanon.
“Omar’s release was a sign to show good
intentions by the Turkish authorities,” says Sheikh Ali Abbas Zougheib, head of
the committee charged with following up the abducted pilgrims’ case.
He added that Turkish
authorities have made no connections between Omar’s release and the
negotiations to release the Turkish nationals.http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Aug-28/185833-erdogan-named-you-to-be-freed-lebanese-hostage-speaks-about-experiences.ashx#axzz24lZrSlqk
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