This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/10/syrian-kidnappers-seize-spanish-reporter-photographer

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Syrian kidnappers seize Spanish reporter and photographer Syrian kidnappers seize Spanish reporter and photographer
(35 minutes later)
Spanish newspaper El Mundo says one of its reporters and a freelance photographer are being held hostage in Syria by a group linked to al-Qaida. Fighters linked to al-Qaida abducted a Spanish journalist and a photographer in a rebel-held Syrian province in September, their families said on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, El Mundo said veteran reporter Javier Espinosa and photographer Ricardo Garcia Vilanova were taken captive on 16 September. Journalist Javier Espinosa and photographer Ricardo Garcia-Vilanova were taken by rebel group, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on 16 September at a checkpoint in Raqqa province, which fell to militant Islamist brigades in March, the journalists' families said.
It said it had not publicised the news because their families were trying to make discreet contact with their captors. Espinosa, who works for El Mundo newspaper, and freelance photographer Garcia-Vilanova were just a few kilometres from the border with Turkey and were trying to leave Syria at the time. They were taken to Raqqa city.
The newspaper said the two were taken, along with four members of the Free Syrian Army rebel group, at the Tal Abyad checkpoint in the northern province of Raqqa. They were travelling with members of the rebel Free Syrian Army, who were also taken by ISIL but released after 12 days.
It identified the kidnappers as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria group known by its initials, ISIS. The incident had not been reported until now because of negotiations with the rebels holding the men.
"We have reached an impasse with the captors after many weeks of attempted mediation," Monica Preito, Espinosa's wife and fellow journalist who has covered the Syrian civil war, said at a news conference in Beirut.
"Today we appeal to the Syrian people and all armed groups to help release Javier and Ricardo who have always been committed to show the human face and suffering of the Syrian people during these very difficult times," she said.
The pair are veteran journalists who have covered the Syrian conflict since its beginning and have travelled to the region around 10 times.
Fifty-five journalists have been killed and 30 are still missing in Syria, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists, making it the most dangerous place in the world for media workers.
Syria's conflict began with peaceful protests in March 2011 and developed into an armed insurrection when these were violently suppressed. More than 100,000 people have been killed and fighting has broadly settled into a stalemate.
Hardline Islamist groups have exploited the power vacuum in many rebel-held areas to exercise their authority at the expense of more moderate opposition factions.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.