BEIRUT (AP)
-- Officials say a Lebanese man has been arrested in connection with the
abduction of two Turkish pilots, snatched by gunmen while on a stopover
in Beirut.
The security officials say police
and armed forces increased security measures around Turkish offices in
Lebanon following the arrest. They spoke on condition of anonymity in
line with regulations.
The officials
identified the arrested man as Mohammed Saleh. He was taken into custody
late Sunday after allegedly contacting the pilots' kidnappers.
The
abductions, which took place on Friday, appear linked to neighboring
Syria's civil war and could be a possible retaliation for the holding
since May 2012 of nine Lebanese Shiites Muslim pilgrims by Syrian
rebels.
Turkey has backed the overwhelmingly Sunni rebels in Syria while the Lebanese are deeply divided over the conflict.
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