Released Estonians Tell Judge of Abductors Affiliation, Ideology
Seven kidnapped Estonians were freed in Lebanon on Thursday, almost four months since armed men abducted them as they entered the country on a bicycle tour from neighboring Syria.
Later on Thursday, Military Investigative Judge Fadi Sawwan heard the testimonies of the seven men in his office at the Military Court in Beirut.
During the hearing session, which lasted around six hours, the seven revealed to Sawwan the identities, affiliation, beliefs and ideology of the kidnappers, state-run National News Agency reported. However, the identity of the kidnappers will not be made public due to the confidentiality of the investigations, NNA added.
The agency noted that the seven men were not threatened by their abductors ahead of their release and that they were not aware whether or not their country had paid a ransom in order to free them. “But they did not personally pay any ransom” to the kidnappers, NNA noted.
The seven, all in their 30s and 40s, appeared on the balcony of the French embassy in the capital Beirut, where they smiled and waved at journalists gathered outside before joining hands and taking a bow.
Estonia's government said the group were being cared for at the French Embassy in Beirut.
The cyclists, who were abducted from eastern Lebanon on March 23, would undergo a medical examination at the embassy before being joined by Estonia's Foreign Minister Urmas Paet, a police official said.
The Estonian minister is scheduled to arrive in Lebanon Thursday night, said Voice of Lebanon radio.
He telephoned Prime Minister Najib Miqati to discuss the release of the cyclists and he is scheduled to meet with the premier at the Grand Serail upon his arrival in Lebanon.
Paet said no force was used to free the hostages and that several countries and their respective intelligence services were involved in the operation.
When asked whether the Estonian government paid a ransom, Paet referred only to the "costs" involved.
"There are always costs involved with such a joint (release) operation," Paet told a news conference in Tallinn, Estonia.
He did not elaborate except to say that "the cost was not minor."
The minister and the cyclists were scheduled to travel Estonia on Thursday night, the police official said, declining to give further details on how they came to be released.
Lebanon's Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, meanwhile, said he could not confirm reports a ransom was paid to secure their freedom.
"To my knowledge they (the abductors) did not make any demands for a ransom for their release," Charbel told Lebanese television.
He also revealed that nine people, including Lebanese, were arrested in connection with the kidnapping.
Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi, for his part, said he was pleased with the "happy ending" but underlined that the case was far from over.
"The case is not closed to Lebanon's judiciary, which will continue its investigation until all details are uncovered and those responsible for the abduction identified," Qortbawi said in a statement.
Estonia, a tiny Baltic nation of 1.3 million, has no embassy in Lebanon and France has played a prominent role in the case.
France's ambassador to Lebanon, Denis Pietton, said he was happy his country had been able to aid Lebanon and Estonia in reaching Thursday's "happy ending".
"France had been solicited for ... logistic and diplomatic aid in the case as Estonia does not have an embassy in Lebanon," Pietton told reporters outside the Lebanese foreign ministry.
The abductors -- believed to be a previously unknown group called Haraket al-Nahda Wal-Islah (Movement for Renewal and Reform) -- had reportedly demanded ransom in exchange for the release of the Estonians.
The seven Estonians are Kalev Kaosaar, August Tillo, Madis Paluoja, Priit Raistik, Jaan Jagomagi, Andre Pukk, and Martin Metspalu.
Their plight drew widespread support in their homeland, where leaders had taken to wearing yellow ribbons to symbolize hope that they would be released.
The cyclists had been shown appealing for help in videos posted on the Internet in April and May. A third video was emailed to several of their relatives in June.
In the first video, the seven called on the leaders of Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and France -- but not Estonia -- to help them.
They did not present any demands on behalf of their captors nor did they specify what country they were in.
Since the kidnapping in the eastern Bekaa Valley, the case had been shrouded in mystery, but several people were arrested in Lebanon in connection with the kidnapping.
Sources following the case said investigators at the time determined the video was uploaded in the Syrian capital Damascus, leading to speculation the men were moved across the border from Lebanon.
Source: Agence France Presse, Associated Press
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