Fares Gemayel to LBCI: Mikati did not save any effort in the case of Aazaz hostages

The adviser to the caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Fares Gemayel said on Saturday that Mikati did not save any effort to release the Lebanese hostages in Aazaz, noting that he held talks with Turkish officials in a bid to resolve the case, “but the Turkish authorities denied having any relation with the kidnappers of the Lebanese pilgrims inside the Syrian territories.”              

In a statement to LBCI’s Nharkom Said, Gemayel said that Mikati and his family have no interests in Turkey.            

“Was Mikati expected to cheer for the abduction of Turkish nationals on the airport road?” Gemayel asked.                    

On Friday 9th of August at 3 am, gunmen intercepted a Turkish Airlines bus at Cocodi Bridge in Beirut and kidnapped two crew members, a pilot and a co-pilot, both are Turkish nationals. The bus carrying the crew members was heading from Beirut international airport toward a hotel in Ain El-Mrayseh.                            

While well-informed sources linked the abduction to the case of the Lebanese hostages held in Aazaz, the relatives of the Aazaz hostages denied being involved in the operation.                            

The incident triggered a chain of reactions mainly from the Turkish side, the most prominent among them was the call launched by the Turkish foreign ministry on its nationals to leave Lebanon, warning its citizens not to travel to Lebanon except in case of necessity.                             

For his part, the Turkish ambassador to Lebanon Inan Ozyildiz confirmed that he is following up on the case, calling on the Lebanese authorities to release the Turkish abductees.                                   

In turn, caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel stressed that the security apparatuses have launched investigations in order to pursue the kidnappers and to reveal the circumstances behind the incident.                   

Eleven Lebanese pilgrims were kidnapped on their way back from Iran by insurgents hoping to use them for a prisoner swap on the 22nd of May. Only two have so far been released.                

Their families have vowed to continue their movements until all their loved ones have returned home "safe and sound".                                 

They accuse Ankara of sponsoring the kidnapping and the Lebanese government of inaptness in this regard.