Turkish Airlines: Rafik Hariri International Airport

Rafik Hariri International Airport: The six assailants stopped the vehicle on an old airport road in Beirut, pulling the two Turkish nationals from the van and letting the rest of the crew go, Lebanese security officials said. The vehicle was travelling from Rafik Hariri International Airport to a Beirut hotel when the ambush took place, according to the officials, who spoke on condition anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters, according to Huffington Post. The civil war in Syria has deeply divided the Lebanese. Syrian rebels, who are predominantly Sunni Muslim and backed by Turkey, have been holding nine Lebanese Shiites hostage since last year. There have been other kidnappings on both sides since the war began and BEIRUT -- Gunmen ambushed a van carrying a Turkish Airlines crew in the Lebanese capital Friday, kidnapping a pilot and a co-pilot in an attack that appeared to be linked to the civil war in neighbouring Syria. Lebanon's state news agency said a group called Zuwaar al-Imam Rida claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. The previously unknown group said in a statement that the pilots "will only be released when the Lebanese hostages in Syria return,'' according to the National News Agency. The veracity of the claim could not be immediately verified. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.