|
ISTANBUL – One Turkish journalist detained in Syria is a devout Muslim whowas on a Gaza-bound aid ship targeted in an Israeli raid in 2010,and reported being wounded by American bombing on a trip toAfghanistan. His cameraman is a film school student who, ahead ofhis Syria trip, ducked his father's disapproval by claiming he washeaded to Italy. Adem Ozkose, 34, and Hamit Coskun, 21, are expected to be releasedafter negotiations reflecting the opaque blend of regional rivalryand cooperation between Turkey, a foe of Syria's regime, and Iran,a staunch supporter of Damascus. The Syrian government isstruggling to crush an opposition movement that is increasinglyretaliating with armed strikes. Syria curbed outside media access except for a few official tours,and international journalists periodically slipped into thecountry, several dying in efforts to cover the uprising. Ozkose, areporter for Milat, a startup Turkish newspaper with an Islamicbackground that prints 10,000 copies daily, crossed the border withCoskun, a freelancer, and a budget of $2,000. On March 10, Ozkose, who had previously lived in Syria, called hiseditors from Idlib, a northern province, at a time when Syrianforces with tanks and artillery were preparing to move againstpoorly armed rebels there. "'We're going to follow the demonstration here, and we'll reportsomething soon,'" Turgut Alp Boyraz, foreign editor at Milat, citedOzkose as saying. That was the last the paper heard from him untilthe two journalists made brief phone calls from Syrian detention totheir families on May 5. However, Iran was acting as diplomatic go-between between Syria andTurkey, which has shut its embassy in Syria and wants PresidentBashar Assad to resign for attacking population centers. On Friday,a Turkish newspaper, Hurriyet Daily News, cited an unnamed Iraniandiplomat as saying a deal had been struck for the release of thetwo men. As in Syria, Turkey and Iran back opposing factions in Iraq in whatsome analysts call a proxy conflict tinged with sectarian tension.Turkey's role as a NATO member troubles Iran, whose nuclear programalarms the West. Yet the regional heavyweights have close businessties and keep their public diplomacy civil. Iran sought Turkish help this year in releasing Iranian pilgrimswho were detained by the Syrian opposition, and Turkey "madeefforts to contact some people on the ground" to secure theirfreedom, a Turkish official said on condition of anonymity becauseof the sensitivity of the matter. After Ozkose and Coskun were seized by pro-government groups inSyria, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu raised the case ina conversation with his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Salehi. According to the Turkish official, Davutoglu essentially said: "'Ifyou have any influence on the Syrians, it's time to show it ...it's better for you to take some steps.'" A recent video showing envoys from an Islamic aid group, known byits Turkish acronym IHH, with the journalists in Damascus offeredthe first public images of the pair since they disappeared twomonths ago. "God willing, we will be back home in the nearest time possible,thanks to everyone who prayed for us," Ozkose, stocky and bearded,says in the video. "Today is the happiest day of my life," says Coskun, who hasshoulder-length hair. Both men look healthy. IHH operated the boat on which nine activists died in an attempt tobreak the Israeli blockade of Palestinian-held Gaza in 2010,triggering an international uproar. Ozkose photographed bloodiedIsraeli commandos who were briefly held by the passengers, and saidhe was hit and handcuffed by Israelis. In a speech posted on YouTube, Ozkose also discusses an earlierreporting trip to Afghanistan in which an insurgent leader near himis killed by American bombing, and he is injured in the arm. Herecalled saying: "'God, please accept this. God willing, this bloodis for you.'" According to Dunya Bizim, an Islamic website, Ozkose spoke in 2010at an Istanbul memorial service for Rachel Corrie, an Americanprotester run over by an Israeli army bulldozer in Gaza in 2003."If I were not a journalist, I'd be a jihadist," or holy warrior,Ozkose said. Turkish media reported that Ozkose and Coskun are expected toappear in a Syrian court on charges of illegal trespassing prior totheir likely release. Editors at Milat newspaper were apprehensivethat Syria might seek concessions, possibly by asking for thehandover of wanted Syrians in Turkey in exchange for thejournalists. "We don't want them to be used in any negotiations. This is againstinternational law," news coordinator Ibrahim Sarp said in aninterview in his office. He said he believed the Syrian chaosmasked a deeper conflict pitting Iran against Turkey and itsWestern allies. Milat, which roughly translates in Turkish as "birth" or"beginning," started publishing in October and stands outside themainstream of big media outlets owned by Turkey's businessconglomerates. Ozkose also worked for its sister magazine, GercekHayat, and he and Coskun planned to film a Syrian documentary forHilal TV, an Islamic channel. Deniz Ergurel, secretary-general of the Media Association, anon-profit group that promotes media reform in Turkey, describedMilat's readership as particularly interested in political Islamand regional upheavals. In an interview last year with Kokludegisim, an Islamic magazine,Ozkose said people in the region wanted freedom and that "thefuture belongs to the Islamic movement" if it seizes theopportunity. "The Arabic youth don't mean liberty as in Western-style liberty.They rise up against dictatorship, for a free place whereintellectuals can speak the truth without fear. They want toobserve their own faith without any difficulty," he said. ____ Associated Press writer Emrah Betos contributed to this report. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as China Retail Display Hooks , China Badge Holder Clip for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Conference Name Badge Holders.
Related Articles -
China Retail Display Hooks, China Badge Holder Clip,
|
