The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on Tuesday welcomed the release of Theo Curtis, the American journalist who was set free yesterday in Syria. The IFJ in a statement also voiced concern for the safety of many others still being held, including up to twenty in Syria alone.
Reports said that Curtis was being held captive by Al-Nusra group since his capture in 2012 after he was abducted in Turkey on his way to Syria.
The IFJ urged the governments in the region to double their efforts to secure freedom for all held journalists, particularly Steven Sotloff, another American journalist taken by the Islamic State. "Everything must be done to rescue him and spare him the same fate as James Foley's," said Beth Costa, IFJ General Secretary. "The international community must come together and make it clear that the abduction of journalists, as civilians, is a violation of the laws of war which will not be tolerated," she added.
The Brussels-based IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 134 countries.