by Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BEIRUT, Lebanon–Seven Estonian cyclists who were abducted on 23 March 2011 in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley have been released, according to the Estonian foreign ministry. All seven men are in their 30s and entered Lebanon from Syria on a bicycle tour.

Security sources reported that on 23 March 2011, the seven men were cycling in Lebanon’s Easter Valley when masked gunmen in a black Mercedes and two white vans with no license plates kidnapped the foreigners on a road between Zahle, a predominantly Christian town, and Kfar Zabed, a town with a healthy Sunni-Christian mix.

Kfar Zabed is located some 10 kilometers (approximately 6.21 miles) southeast of Zahle and five kilometers (approximately 3.11 miles) from Lebanon’s border with Syria. The Bekaa Valley is notorious for engaging in unlawful activities including kidnappings.

A group known as Haraket Al-Nahda Wal-Islah (Movement for Renewal and Reform) claimed responsibility for the kidnapping and demanded an undisclosed ransom. This group was previously unheard of according to Lebanese security officials.

The case to recover the seven cyclists had been covered in mystery for months, although several individuals were arrested in Lebanon in connection with the kidnapping. Lebanese Interior officials confirmed that 9 people implicated in the abduction had been arrested, including Lebanese suspects and those of other nationalities.

The Estonians were shown asking for help on video three times: 20 April, 20 May, and 8 July. The first two videos were posted on the Internet while the third video was sent to the relatives of the hostages. The seven men were seen calling on the leaders of Lebanon, Saudia Arabia, Jordan, and France for assistance. None of the videos released made political demands, although it has not been made public whether a ransom was actually paid to ensure the release of the hostages.

Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet shared these sentiments followed the release of the seven cyclists;  “The main thing now is for our seven fellow countrymen to get home to their families and loved ones as quickly as possible.”

The cyclists were freed in the town of Arsal. As Estonia lacks diplomatic representation in Lebanon, the cyclists were taken directly to the French embassy in the capital, Beirut. French diplomats have already begun to work on an official release for the hostages.

Lebanese Interior Minister Marwan Charbel expressed that “Our sole priority right now is to ensure that they arrive at the embassy safe and found, and then we will hear whatever details they have.”

Although relatively prominent before, the kidnapping of Westerners in Lebanon has become less common since the end of the civil war in 1990.

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera-Kidnapped Estonians freed in Lebanon-14 July 2011

BBC-Seven Estonian hostages freed in Lebanon-14 July 2011

CNN-Army:Estonian cyclists abducted in Lebanon are released-14 July 2011

Reuters-Estonia confirms kidnapped men released in Lebanon-14 July 2011