Families of Kidnapped Pilgrims Hold Sit-in near Presidential Palace

Families of the 11 Lebanese pilgrims kidnapped in Syria briefly blocked on Tuesday the road to the presidential palace in Baabda to protest the ongoing abduction of their loves ones.

One of the relatives explained that the protest is a message to President Michel Suleiman to urge him to exert more efforts to resolve the case of the pilgrims.

“We had hoped that he would respect the people as much as we respect him,” said one of the protesters.

“We were hoping that on the occasion of Christmas more efforts would be exerted in the case,” she added.

“We had hoped for seven moths that some one would help end this problem,” said another.

“We were not seeking to resort to blocking roads, but officials are forcing us to take such measures,” she stated tearfully.

They held Suleiman responsible for the delay in resolving the abduction.

The families of the pilgrims staged on Sunday a sit-in in front of the Turkish Embassy in Lebanon, vowing to “take escalatory measures against Turkish interests in Lebanon at the beginning of the new year.”

They held Turkey responsible for the ongoing “humanitarian crime” against the pilgrims, without ruling out the possibility of resorting to kidnappings to resolve the problem.

On May 22, eleven Lebanese pilgrims were kidnapped in Syria's Aleppo district as they were making their way back by land from a pilgrimage in Iran.

One was released in late August and another in September, while the rest remain in Aazaz, Syria.