It’s been nearly five months since 42 Indian men went missing in the Islamic State-controlled city of Mosul in Iraq but Indian officials say they continue to believe they are alive.
Official sources told The Hindu , “The last information received by the government was that they were in custody but unharmed. No information contrary to that has been received.”
India’s special envoy Suresh Reddy also remains in Erbil, the Kurd-controlled city closest to Mosul, and is spearheading the efforts to secure their release.
Asked specifically about the last time the government had heard about the whereabouts of the men, who were textile workers, a source familiar with the government’s efforts said, “Different sources are confirming information at different times. But if anything untoward had happened to them, we would certainly have heard by now.”
Concerns grew this week over killings in Mosul around June 11, the day IS forces took over the city, after the Human Rights Watch published eyewitness accounts that said as many as 600 Shia soldiers in the Badoush prison on the outskirts had been executed that day.
However, there has been some hope after 49 Turkish prisoners, also from Mosul, were released by IS fighters in September, after three months in custody. The release was secured after negotiations aided by the Iraqi government, while reports said that the Turkish government had used its influence over a Syrian rebel group to release IS prisoners in exchange.
In an effort to look for similar leverage, The Hindu has learnt, the government has stepped up diplomatic efforts and intelligence exchanges in the region. While senior intelligence officials have travelled to Turkey and Saudi Arabia in the past few weeks, a senior Syrian intelligence team visited New Delhi and met with the National Security Adviser in the third week of September. Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar is expected to visit the city shortly as well.
Confirming the discussions on IS, Syrian Ambassador to Delhi Riyad Kamel Abbas told The Hindu , “There is full cooperation between India and Syria on the issue of IS. Syria is ready to provide all help to the Indian government they require.”
Mr. Abbas said that concerns over the possibility of Indian citizens travelling to Syria and Iraq to join the IS was discussed but there “was no evidence of any Indian being among the fighters that the Syrian government has been monitoring.”
