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(CNN) -- Thirteen nuns and three workers kidnapped in late November from a Greek Orthodox monastery in Syria were freed Sunday, a pro-Syrian government news network and Lebanese state media reported. A convoy of around 30 vehicles picked up the ...
Reports: 13 nuns freed by kidnappers in Syria
updated 9:29 PM EDT, Sun March 9, 2014
A handout photo released by
Syria's Arab News Agency shows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad speaking
during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, on Saturday, March 8, to mark the
51st anniversary of the 1963 revolution, when Baath Party supporters in
the Syrian army seized power. Al-Assad said the country will go on with
reconciliation efforts along with its fight against terrorism. The
United Nations estimates more than 100,000 people have been killed since the Syrian conflict began in March 2011.
HIDE CAPTION
Syrian civil war in 2014
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: The nuns are mobbed by crowds as they arrive in a Syrian-Lebanon border town
- Nuns and workers kidnapped last year reportedly freed, pro-Syrian regime media say
- Lebanese official to state news: Nuns freed in exchange for Syrian prisoners' release
- Christians make up 10% of Syria's population; many back al-Assad, fear Islamist militants
A convoy of around 30
vehicles picked up the nuns and workers in one part of Syria and took
them into Lebanon, the country's National News Agency reported late
Sunday. The convoy traveled through Lebanon to another border crossing
into Syria, the hillside village of Jdaidet Yabous. There, the group
will be met by Greek Orthodox church officials, who will welcome them
back into Syria, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.
The convoy was at one
point delayed several hours for "logistical reasons" but later resumed
en route to Jdaidet Yabous, Public Security Director Gen. Abbas Ibrahim
told NNA.
When they did arrive
overnight, the nuns -- some smiling, some solemn and at least one of
whom appeared to be being carried -- were mobbed by an enthusiastic
crowd that included church officials.
Ibrahim said that no
money was paid to secure the release of the nuns, adding that it was
part of a deal in exchange for 150 females that the Syrian government
was holding.
Qatari intelligence chief
Saadeh Kobeisi reportedly crossed deep into Syrian territory to obtain
the release of the Syrian nuns. He crossed into Syria as part of a
Lebanese Internal Security delegation, the state news agency said.
Senior Orthodox Bishop
Lucas al-Khoury earlier Sunday spoke to pro-Syrian government Ikhbariya
television. He stood on the Syrian side of the border hoping to greet
the nuns and said the negotiations for their release took several months
because the kidnappers "made false requests intended to stall the
process."
Syrian crisis hurts Lebanon
The Greek Orthodox
figure, who often speaks out on behalf of Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad's government, added that the recent Syrian troop offensive on
the opposition stronghold of Yabroud worked in favor of the nuns'
release.
Days after the kidnapping, SANA reported that armed terrorists took the nuns, implying that rebels fighting to oust al-Assad were behind the attack.
The chief of an
opposition group based in London told CNN he had confirmed that al-Nusra
Front fighters abducted the nuns, but Rami Abdurrahman said the
fighters did so to protect them from what the group believed would be an
impending attack by Syrian government forces.
CNN could not confirm
Abdurrahman's account of why the nuns were taken from the Monastery of
Saint Tecla in the predominantly Christian village of Maaloula, about 40
miles west of Damascus. Abdurrahman leads the Syrian Observatory for
Human Rights, based in Great Britain.
The U.S. State Department has designated the al-Nusra Front a terrorist organization with links to al Qaeda.
Christians make up about 10% of the population of Syria, but Christianity has a rich history there.
Jesus was baptized in
the Jordan River, and some people believe it was in a location now along
a part of modern-day Syria. Some of the earliest relics were found
there. And Maaloula, in the Qalamoun Mountains, is one of the last
places where the ancient Aramaic that Jesus spoke is still the main
language.
Many of Syria's
Christians support the al-Assad government, fearing that an end to his
presidency could lead to instability and an Islamist power grab.
Meanwhile, on Sunday
four rescue workers who rushed to help survivors of a barrel bomb attack
in the city of Aleppo became victims themselves when more of the crude
explosive devices were dropped by government helicopters, according to
the Aleppo Media Center, a communication outlet run by rebels fighting
to oust al-Assad.
At least 14 are reported dead in that incident, the outlet said.
In another neighborhood
Sunday, rescue workers recovered the bodies of a husband, wife and five
children ranging in ages from 5 to 14, the outlet reported. A barrel
bomb had apparently leveled their home, it said. The attack killed at
least 10 people total and destroyed six residential buildings, the
outlet reported.
The father of one child
victim wept and flailed his arms against his body as he cried, "Where is
my son, my Hamoudi? They buried them alive. Oh God, they buried them
alive!" a video on YouTube shows.
CNN's Saad Abedine and Greg Botelho contributed to this report.
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