Syrian rebels holding Ukrainian journalist Ankhar Kotchneva in captivity said they have postponed her execution until Dec. 23 to allow for negotiations to reach an end.
The
abductors said they would execute Kotchneva by Dec.
13, but then delayed their plans, claiming they were waiting for Ukrainian or
Russian authorities to meet their demands, which they refused to announce
publicly. According to news reports, the
rebels denied money was on the list of demands.
Kotchneva, 40, who used to work as an interpreter
and journalist for a number of Russian media, was kidnapped in mid-October by
guerillas claiming to belong to the rebel Free Syrian Army.
“If the Ukrainian authorities have faithful
intentions all will be fine. If we are deceived, the results will be negative,”
Abu Jandal, one of the Free Syrian Army’s commanders, said in a Skype
conversation to TV journalist Nataliya Gumenyuk, who posted it on her blog. “We
are waiting for somebody to get in touch with us at 1500 on Dec. 18,” Jandal
added.
Gumenyuk
said she was surprised that nobody from Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Ministry
asked her for contacts or other information that she received from the Syrian
rebels after she published Jandal’s demands on Dec. 17.
But
authorities claim they have all the information they need. They added that attempts
to release Kotchneva outside of regular diplomatic channels are
being explored. Authorities, however, refused to provide details on these efforts,
saying this information could harm the kidnapped woman.
“Every
careless word may threaten her life and the lives of other Ukrainians in
Syria,” said Oleh Voloshyn, Foreign Ministry’s spokesman. “So the MFA will
avoid any public comments on this issue.”
Later the
Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Dec. 18 the abductors made
“different, sometimes contradictory demands for her (Kotchneva’s) release.” The
ministry added that in their attempts to release the journalist they work in
cooperation with UN, League of Arab States, Red Cross and over ten other
foreign partners.
Previously,
the Foreign Ministry outraged the Syrian rebels when on Dec. 11 it issued a
public demand to release Kotchneva. The next day, Syrian rebels promised
to “not to let a single Ukrainian, Russian or Iranian come out of Syria alive.”
They also said Kotchneva “was carrying a gun and was an
interpreter for Russian officers.”
Russia has
backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war with rebels, but has
lately admitted that guerilla coalition forces could win.
It remains
unclear how far Kotchneva, fluent in Arabic, was involved in
the Syrian conflict. Her coverage of the Syrian conflict for several Russian
media, including NTV, RenTV and RT channels favored Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad. She voiced support for the Syrian president in interviews she gave to
other news outlets as an expert on the region. When she was abducted, Kotchneva
was employed as an interpreter.
In one of
her two video addresses, recently aired by her captors, she said she came to
Syria on orders from Russian secret services. But some observers claim the
woman could have been forced to make such an admission by her captors.
“I beg you to
set her free. Ukraine and Russia please save her until it is too late,” her
mother Liudmila Kotchneva said, crying in a video posted by the 1+1 television
channel on Dec. 12.
A number of
organizations, including the U.S. Department of State, Amnesty International
and Reporters Without Borders have called for Kotchneva’s release. Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych also showed concern
about her life and demanded Ukrainian diplomats do everything possible to secure
her release.
Kotchneva also
has Russian citizenship, said a Ukrainian government source familiar with the
situation, but speaking to the Kyiv Post on condition of anonymity because of
lack of authorization to speak publicly on the matter.
Russian
authorities have, so far, kept a distance from her case.
“In this
situation, Ukraine has to work in cooperation with those who sent her
(Kotchneva) to Syria, I mean the Russian TV broadcasters and Russian state,”
said Igor Semyvolos, head of the Center for Middle East Studies in Kyiv. “But
it looks like Russia doesn’t participate in any efforts.”
Fifteen
journalists have lost their lives since the beginning of bloody Syrian war
conflict in March; two foreign journalists have also gone missing.
Kyiv Post staff writer Oksana Grytsenko can be
reached at [email protected]
