Estonian Cyclists Held Captive in Syria and Lebanon

The seven Estonians who were kidnapped in Lebanon for four months revealed that they were held captive in Lebanon and Syria, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.

They told Agence France Presse during a press conference in the Estonian capital Tallinn: “We were held in three different secret locations by the eight terrorists, in both Lebanon and Syria. The big advantage was we were together, and that unity gave us the strength to believe we would see a happy end.”

Madis Paluoja, Jaan Jagomagi, Kalev Kaosaar, Martin Metspalu, Andre Pukk, Priit Raistik and August Tillo were kidnapped on March 23 soon after arriving in Lebanon from Syria.

They said during the press conference that they felt that they were being followed soon after arriving in Lebanon on board their bicycles.

When they were a short distance from Zahle, two cars hit two of the cyclists, while a third was hit repeatedly by the car door, reported As Safir.

The armed assailants then ordered them to get into a van that soon arrived at the scene, continued the Estonians.

In the van, they were stripped of their mobile phones, except for Paluoja who was tempted to send a message to his wife informing her of their ordeal, but he opted against it.

He estimated that they were kept in a hideout in Lebanon and another in Syria, noting that the kidnappers managed to cross between the two countries undetected by the authorities.

He added that all seven of them were never separated, saying that it was likely because the abductors did not have enough secure hideouts to keep them in.

During the second week of the abduction, Jagomagi stated that the kidnappers aggressively ordered them to verify media reports that four of the Estonians were Jews or from Denmark, homeland of a cartoonist who sparked Muslim ire in 2005 for a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed.

The men said that they were kept in a modest hideout, but they never felt hungry.

At one point, they were kept in a warehouse with a metal door and a window with very little sunlight coming through.

The kidnappers allowed them to occasionally open the window, they continued.

Paluoja stated that the captives did not speak to each other when the kidnappers performed their daily prayers, stressing that they were not prevented from speaking, but they felt that they should act as guests.

Jagomagi revealed that the captors were very religious and had urged them to convert to Islam.

They only received word that they will be freed only hours before their release at dawn on Thursday.

The Estonians said that they were transported to the area of Sahel al-Taybeh from Syria where they were given a mobile phone and an Estonian number, which they were ordered to dial at dawn.

The abductors then left them in the isolated location.

The negotiations that led to their release remain shrouded in mystery, reported An Nahar.

Estonia turned to fellow European Union members and NATO allies, notably France, for help because the former Soviet-ruled nation of 1.3 million has only a small diplomatic presence in the Middle East.

So far 14 individuals have been charged with being involved in the abduction, five of whom are still at large, said the daily.

The freed men appeared to be in good health.

Asked if they had been well-treated, Paet responded: "There is nothing human about being taken hostage".

The abductors -- believed to be a previously unknown group called Haraket Al-Nahda Wal-Islah (Movement for Renewal and Reform) -- had reportedly demanded a ransom.