Cape Town - Kidnapped photojournalist Shiraaz Mohamed has made contact with his ex-wife after escaping from his captors in Darkoush, Syria.
Mohamed’s former wife, Shaaziya Brijlal, said Mohamed had made contact with her on Saturday, while with a group who helped him escape.
“We have secure and reliable information that the people who helped Shiraaz have delivered him into Turkey. On Saturday Shiraaz did call me, he voiced (voicenote) and then video- called me at about one o’clock.
“He said he was with a group of people and he was making his way to the border. These people are obviously helping him, because while we were talking, he was greeting some of them or they were greeting him.
“He sounded well. He sounded strong and he was a little anxious. He didn’t want anyone to know what was happening. He made it quite clear at that time, he didn’t want anyone to know that this was happening. He did promise that he was going to phone me once he reaches Turkey. So we are all waiting anxiously for that call.”
Brijlal said that when he called on Saturday, she immediately informed his family. “It was the best news but we were also very anxious that he would be safe. He sounded anxious about that. I think that would be because he had been in captivity for so long.
“We were both crying and he was very happy to hear my voice and make contact.”
Mohamed told Brijlal that the videos showing him being tortured by his captors, and distributed during ransom negotiations, were fake.
“On September 23 I received a video, not a very clear one, where he was being tortured.
“I asked him about it. He said those videos were staged.”
She said: “Overall, I get the impression he was treated okay. He looks quite different from the videos. He looks more like the Shiraaz we know. He looks well.
“I actually screamed when I realised it was him. I had been in deep conversation with the ladies around me and it took me a few seconds to register it was Shiraaz on the phone.
“Our negotiation team is a part of what’s going on in terms of diplomatic protocols and all of that. We have been asked to be patient. Everything is a process,” said Brijlal.
“There is no clear indication of when he will be put on to that plane. So we are waiting”
Other sources informed Brijlal that during captivity, Mohamed had been sold a few times. The Department of International Relations and Co- operation said they could not positively confirm that Mohamed had escaped from captivity in Syria.
Spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said: “We still need to verify with the Turkey authorities that Mohamed is indeed safe. Only once we have received the confirmation will the department react.”
Relief agency Gift of the Givers shared the hopeful news of Mohamed’s escape. The organisation’s founder, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, said the news from unknown sources on his escape was encouraging, and said that Shiraaz Mohamed was free.
“The details are sketchy but we were told that Shiraaz ‘escaped’ from captivity and at some point was assisted by ‘friendly’ people, who were very aware of his case, given the huge publicity Gift of the Givers initiated.”