Suleiman Calls for Turkish Pressures to Release Aazaz Abductees

President Michel Suleiman called on Turkey to exert more pressure to release the abducted Lebanese in the Syrian town of Aazaa.

Suleiman stressed during his meeting on Wednesday with the Turkish Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim at the Presidential Palace in Baabda that such pressure helps enhance relations between Lebanon and Turkey.

The nine men were kidnapped by Syrian rebels in the province of Aleppo as they returned home from a pilgrimage in Iran last May.

Moreover, the president extended gratitude to Turkey for taking part in the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon deployed in the south.

On his part, Yildirim hailed the bilateral relations between the two countries mainly at the economic level.

The minister also vowed to convey the Lebanese stance to Turkish officials voicing hopes for a continued cooperation between the two states.

Yildirim arrived in Beirut on Wednesday accompanied by a Turkish delegation for talks with Lebanese officials.