Turkey: No Ransom Paid for Release of Hostages Held by ISIS/ISIL Militants

President Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday no ransom had been paid for the release of Turkish hostages held by Islamic State militants but he declined to be drawn on whether their release freed Turkey's hand to take a more active stance against the insurgents.

Turkish intelligence agents brought 46 hostages seized by Islamic State militants in northern Iraq back to Turkey on Saturday after more than three months in captivity, in what Erdogan described as a covert rescue operation.
"A material negotiation is totally out of the question … This is a diplomatic success," Erdogan said before leaving for a gathering of the U.N. General Assembly in New York.


Security sources told Reuters on Saturday the hostages had been released overnight in the town of Tel Abyad on the Syrian side of the border with Turkey after being transferred from the eastern Syrian city of Raqqa, Islamic State group's stronghold. Officials declined to give details of the rescue operation..................http://www.france24.com/en/20140921-climate-change-rally-paris-new-york-united-nations/
21/9/14
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