Syrian nuns appear in video, deny kidnapping.....then why the prisoner exchange demand?(TOI).
BEIRUT (AP) — A group of Syrian nuns reportedly abducted by rebels from a convent in a Christian village near Damascus appeared in a video broadcast on Al-Jazeera Friday, denying they have been kidnapped and saying they were in a safe location away from the shelling.
The nuns appeared healthy in the video shown on the satellite channel. They sat on sofas in a house at an undisclosed location, and took turns speaking.
“The brothers are treating us well and have brought us from the convent here and we are very happy,” one of them says to the camera. The video appeared authentic, but it was impossible to independently verify it or to know if the nuns were speaking under duress.
The reported abduction of the nuns has increased concerns about the treatment of Christians by hard-liners in the rebel ranks, particularly as the fighting engulfs a series of ancient Christian villages north of Damascus.
A Syrian opposition group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, and religious officials had said the Orthodox nuns and three civilians were taken by rebels from the Mar Takla convent in Maaloula after rebels overran the village, and were being kept in the nearby rebel-held town of Yabroud.Pope Francis has called for prayers for the nuns.
In the video, 13 nuns took turns at speaking, saying they were in a “villa” and had been merely taken out of Maaloula for their own safety after it came under heavy shelling. Another says they will be released in the coming few days once the shelling stops.Hmmm.......then why the prisoner exchange demand?
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