US Welcomes Release Of Turkish Hostages

The U.S. welcomed on Saturday the release of nearly 50 Turkish hostages held by extremists in Iraq since June.



"We welcome their release and are pleased they will soon be reunited with their families," National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement sent to The Anadolu Agency.



Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that 49 hostages who were held by the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul have been freed and brought back to Turkey Saturday morning.



They were kidnapped from the Turkish consulate in Mosul on June 11, a day after ISIL took control of Iraq's second-largest city.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Washington DC