Report: Abou Faour Negotiating Release of Captives in IS Custody
Health Minister Wael Abou Faour, who has been soothing the relatives of the abducted soldiers and policemen, has been negotiating with the Islamic State group the release of the captives who are in its custody.
According to al-Akhbar newspaper published on Friday, Abou Faour is contacting the group via a mediator from the northeastern border town of Arsal after the IS refused to talk with the Qatari-appointed negotiator, Syrian Ahmed al-Khatib.
Al-Khatib is the lead mediator negotiating with the Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front the release of the servicemen in its captivity.
Al-Akbar reported that the IS had presented to Abou Faour incapacitating demands that the state can never approve.
Abou Faour continuously headed to the protest camp of the relatives of the captives and persuaded them to open roads, vowing that the state will resolve the hostage crisis.
The soldiers and policemen were abducted by the IS and Nusra Front that briefly overran Arsal in August. Three of the hostages have already been executed.
The relatives of the captured men have erected a protest camp near the Grand Serail to press the release of the captives.
The IS group reportedly announced its readiness to release the Lebanese soldiers and policemen in its captivity, if the Lebanese state sets free five Islamist inmates in return for each captive.
However, the Nusra has said that the three-month hostage crisis would end if 10 inmates held at Lebanese prisons would be freed for each hostage or seven Lebanese inmates and 30 female prisoners held in Syria would be released for each abducted soldier and policeman or if five Lebanese and 50 women inmates would be freed.
The group added that the swap with the prisoners held at Syrian prisons should take place in Turkey or Qatar, while the exchange with the Lebanese authorities should take place on the outskirts of the northeastern border town of Arsal.
The cabinet had previously totally rejected any swap deal with the jihadists.
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