Sit-in staged by relatives of Lebanese hostages in Syria’s Aazaz continues

         
Relatives of the Lebanese abducted pilgrims in Syria's Aazaz staged on Wednesday a sit-in outside the Turkish airlines offices in downtown Beirut.

In this context, the spokesperson of the relatives, Hajja Hayat Awali confirmed that the parents and relatives of the Lebanese pilgrims will not leave the street until the return of their loved ones.

A group of these parents and relatives will head to Martyrs' Square to stand in solidarity with the Lebanese of Armenian descent who are commemorating the Armenian Genocide.   

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.           

Last week they prevented several Syrian nationals who operate businesses in some Beirut areas from opening shop, stating that such movements symbolize their sense of desperation.             

Last Friday they also held a major demonstration in Martyrs Square before the Turkish Airline offices whereby they announced that they would be calling for the boycott of all Turkish products in Lebanon since "Lebanon imports a billion dollars worth of products from Ankara on a yearly basis."                 

Since then they have also prevented Turkish trucks from offloading shipments at the Karantina dock.