Freed Turkish journalists fly home from Syria
- 12 years ago
An emotional return home to Istanbul for these two Turkish journalists freed from Syria.
Reporter Adem Ozkose and freelance cameraman Hamit Coskun went missing in early March after sneaking across the border into the Syrian town of Idlib.
It's not clear who had been holding the pair, seen here in Damascus after their release, but they were released with Iran's help, according to the Turkish Foreign Office.
Ozkose told a news conference that they had been held in separate cells.
(SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) TURKISH JOURNALIST, ADEM OZKOSE, SAYING:
"We were held in separate cells for 53 days. Hamit was in a cell, I was in another cell. We have experienced various surprising incidents. Hopefully, people who are suffering in Syria will be free one day."
The release of the pair highlights Iran's influence with its ally Syria, which lost Turkey's friendship after its crack down on pro-democracy protests.
Turkey, home now to nearly 25,000 Syrian refugees, closed its embassy in Damascus in March and has halted flights to and from Syria.
Sunita Rappai, Reuters
Reporter Adem Ozkose and freelance cameraman Hamit Coskun went missing in early March after sneaking across the border into the Syrian town of Idlib.
It's not clear who had been holding the pair, seen here in Damascus after their release, but they were released with Iran's help, according to the Turkish Foreign Office.
Ozkose told a news conference that they had been held in separate cells.
(SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) TURKISH JOURNALIST, ADEM OZKOSE, SAYING:
"We were held in separate cells for 53 days. Hamit was in a cell, I was in another cell. We have experienced various surprising incidents. Hopefully, people who are suffering in Syria will be free one day."
The release of the pair highlights Iran's influence with its ally Syria, which lost Turkey's friendship after its crack down on pro-democracy protests.
Turkey, home now to nearly 25,000 Syrian refugees, closed its embassy in Damascus in March and has halted flights to and from Syria.
Sunita Rappai, Reuters