UNITED NATIONS, August (RIA Novosti) – The United nations confirmed Sunday that US freelance journalist Peter Theo Curtis had been set free after spending two years in Syrian hostage.
“The United Nations can confirm that it facilitated the handover of Peter Theo Curtis,” the organization said in a press release.
Curtis was handed over to UN peacekeepers in al-Rafid village, Quneitra, in the Golan Heights, at 15:40 GMT.
“After receiving a medical check-up, Mr. Curtis was handed over to representatives of his government,” the statement read.
Peter Theo Curtis, from Boston, was kidnapped by militants from al-Qaeda affiliated Nusra Front in October 2012.
Another American journalist, James Foley, who was also abducted by Syrian insurgents, was beheaded last week by rebels from the notoriously violent Islamic State (IS) group, who posted the video of his death on YouTube.
US Secretary of State John Kerry welcomed the news of his compatriot’s release, saying that “after a week marked by unspeakable tragedy, we are all relieved and grateful knowing that Theo Curtis is coming home.”
“Over these last two years, the United States reached out to more than two dozen countries asking for urgent help from anyone who might have tools, influence, or leverage to help secure Theo’s release and the release of any Americans held hostage in Syria,” he said in a statement.
