And those who earlier took seven engineers hostage demanded the Syrian government release a rebel army officer and cease operations in the besieged town of Homs to win the release of those seven hostages.
The rebel Free Syrian Army, the name given to Syrian troops who have defected to the opposition, released a video last week showing the seven men, five of whom the group claims to be Pasdaran (Revolutionary Guards) sent to Syria to help suppress the rebellion.
In a statement, the Free Syrian Army said the captured Iranians “were working under the orders of the intelligence service of the Syrian air force” and had no paperwork to live or work in Syria.
The Iranian government, however, denied that the five men were soldiers. It said the military cards they were carrying were the cards all Iranian men are issued when they complete their military service. Men normally carry the cards with them at all times so they can prove at an Iranian police checkpoint that they have not evaded military service.
Iran said the seven men were engineers working on an electricity generating plant in Homs. Some had been in Syria for four years, Iranian officials said—in other words, they had gone there long before the rebellion erupted 11 months ago. Syrian Minister of Electricity Imad Khamis said construction work has ceased as a result of the abductions.
The latest group of abductees were described by PressTV as Shiite pilgrims seized from a bus near Aleppo. It said armed men took 11 males off the bus and left the women on board untouched.
The kidnapers have released a photo of these latest captives. PressTV said the kidnapers also contacted a relative of one captive and demanded a ransom. PressTV did not describe the ransom demand.
Iran and Syria do not require visas from each other’s citizens, but all Iranian pilgrims entering Syria are required to obtain a permit from Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization. The abductees in this case were pilgrims—but did not have a permit, according to Masud Akhavan of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization.
IRNA reported that more than 5,000 Iranian pilgrims had entered Syria in the last few days, most of them starting their visits at the Shrine of Zeinab in Damascus. Zeinab was the daughter of Imam Ali and his wife Fatemeh and thus the granddaughter of the prophet.
The Free Syrian Army, which claims to have 40,000 men who have deserted the regular army, is active in the city of Homs, the center of the rebellion against Bashar al-Assad’s government. The city has seen a continuous cycle of violence and unrest, including heavy crackdowns from government forces that have resulted in a number of civilian deaths.
The opposition Syrian National Council has accused Iran of “participation” in the violent crackdown on anti-government protesters and called on Iran to stop supporting Assad’s regime.
“The Council condemns the participation of the Iranian regime in killing Syrians who are demanding freedom and urges it to stop taking part in quelling the Syrian revolution, in order to protect the relations between the two peoples,” Samir Neshar, a member of the Council’s executive committee, told reporters in Istanbul.