DAMASCUS
A Syrian opposition group on Wednesday claimed it had abducted a senior official in President Bashar al-Assad’s government.
Islam Alloush, spokesman for Jaysh al-Islam, told Anadolu Agency its fighters had snuck into capital Damascus to seize a “big personality” of the regime.
He would not comment on the identity of the official and did not say when the raid took place.
Social media users had claimed the kidnapped official was Justice Minister Najm al-Ahmad but Lebanese TV news channel Al-Manar later broadcast a purported audio interview with the minister denying the claims.
Jaysh al-Islam, or Army of Islam, is one of the largest armed groups in Syria and is part of the Islamic Front coalition.
