Indirect info suggests two metropolitans kidnapped in Syria were executed

Indirect info suggests two metropolitans kidnapped in Syria were executed. (IF).

Moscow, December 2, Interfax - According to some reports, two Syrian hierarchs, namely Orthodox Church of Antioch Metropolitan of Aleppo Paul and Syro-Jacobite Metropolitan of Aleppo John-Ibrahim, kidnapped in 2013, were executed.

"Leader of the only Middle Eastern Orthodox Party Mashriq Roderick Khoury spoke of this at a meeting with coordinator of the inter-faction State Duma deputy group for the protection of Christian values Sergey Gavrilov on Wednesday," executive secretary of the deputy group Oleg Yefimov told Interfax-Religion.

The leader of the Mashriq party told Gavrilov with reference to sources in Turkey that representatives of radical North Caucasian groupings jointly with Al-Qaeda participated in the kidnapping of Syrian hierarchs, he said.

Meanwhile, a source referred to a statement made by Dagestani native and participant of the terrorist grouping Magomed Abdurakhmanov, who personally confirmed his participation in the kidnapping of the hierarchs.

"The source said that Abdurakhmanov showed a video in which the kidnapped metropolitans were filmed and also reaffirmed that they were executed," the source said.

The inter-faction deputy group intended to urgently turn to the Turkish authorities for confirmation of the detention of Abdurakhmanov and the information he produced about the assassination of the Christian leaders kidnapped in 2013.