Four French journalists held hostage for nearly a year in Syria were released, French officials said Saturday.
Scribes Nicolas Henin, Pierre Torres, Edouard Elias and Didier Francois were found in Sanliurfa province of Turkey blindfolded with their hands tied. Turkish soldiers found the four men on the border with Syria. They went missing in June last year.
All four were in good condition despite the exhausting conditions of their captivity, said French President Francois Hollande in a statement. The released journalists will be back in France within hours, he said.
"I share the joy of the families of our compatriots who have endured ... the fear of this trying time," said Hollande adding his "deep commitment to the freedom of the press, which demands respect for the security and integrity of journalists in their role of providing information."
It was not clear whether the journalists were released or they escaped from their captors. According to the Dogan News Agency, the journalists were held hostage by the radical group, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). However, an unidentified group dropped the journos off at the border of Turkey, Friday night. They would be handed over to the French officials after medical checkups.
Francois, a seasoned war reporter for Europe 1 radio, and photographer Elias were abducted from north of Aleppo, last year June 6. Two weeks later, Henin, reporter for Le Point magazine, and freelance photographer Torres, who worked for French-German news channel Arte, were held hostage in the north of the country, in Raqqa, reports Agence France-Presse.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Syria tops the list of countries unsafe for journalists, reports Reuters. Two French journalists are still missing in the Sahel region of North Africa.
