Syria crisis: Kidnapped nuns released in prisoner deal
A group of Greek Orthodox nuns kidnapped by rebels in the Syrian Christian town of Maaloula in December have been released.
The 13 nuns and their three helpers were said to have been freed as part of a prisoner exchange.
The women have been taken to the town of Judaydat Yabus on the Syrian-Lebanon border, Lebanese state media reported.
Rights groups say kidnappings by both rebel groups and government forces have become increasingly common.
The capture of the nuns had raised fears that Christians were becoming a target for the rebel.
A convoy of Lebanese security vehicles transported the women to the Lebanese border
Opposition fighters, including members of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front, seized the women from the Greek Orthodox convent of Mar Takla when fighters overran Maaloula, about 60km (40 miles) north-east of Damascus, in December, the Associated Press reports.
The nuns, who are believed to be mostly Syrian and Lebanese, worked in the convent’s orphanage, the agency said.
About 150 female prisoners are to be released in exchange for their freedom, Lebanese security chief Gen Abbas Ibrahim told Syrian television.
More than 100,000 people have died and 9.5 million people have been driven from their homes since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011.