EXCERPT: Days after Foley beheading, American journalist kidnapped in Syria in 2012 is released to the UN August 24, 2014 11:56AM ET An American journalist kidnapped in Syria nearly two years ago was freed and handed over to U.N. representatives after Qatari mediation helped lead to his release from the Al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra, or Nusra Front. Jabhat al-Nusra released Peter Theo Curtis, 45, on Sunday, after Curtis was abducted in October 2012 in Antakya, Turkey, where he planned to enter Syria. Peter Theo Curtis had changed his name from Theo Padnos, the name under which he continued to write, to make it easier for him travel in the Arab world, according to a statement from the Curtis family. Curtis abduction had not been previously advertised. But U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry confirmed that he was safe outside Syria and will be reunited with his family soon. Curtis release comes just days after the beheading of journalist James Foley, who was captured in Syria in 2012. Kerry said in a statement, Every waking hour, our thoughts and our faith remain with the Americans still held hostage and with their families, and we continue to use every diplomatic, intelligence, and military tool at our disposal to find them and bring our fellow citizens home. The U.N. said Curtis was handed over to peacekeepers in Al Rafid in the Israeli-held Golan Heights in southwest Syria. “My heart is full at the extraordinary, dedicated, incredible people, too many to name individually, who have become my friends and have tirelessly helped us over these many months,” said Curtis mother, Nancy Curtis, of Cambridge, Massachusetts. “Please know that we will be eternally grateful.”
Posted on: Mon, 25 Aug 2014 07:47:37 +0000
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