A Syrian rebel faction has released Greek Orthodox nuns in a rare prisoner exchange with the government of Bashar al-Assad.
Jabhat al-Nusra released 16 nuns in exchange for 150 female (and children) prisoners held captive by the Assad regime.
The nuns were brought to the Lebanese border town of Arsal early on Monday where they were handed over to Lebanese officials and then driven to Syria.
They said they were tired, but that they had been mostly well treated.
Mother Pelagia Sayyaf, head of the Mar Takla monastery in Maaloula, said the nuns had been treated well.
She told reporters: “God did not leave us. Jabhat al-Nusra was good to us…but we took off our crosses because we were in the wrong place to wear them.”
Jabhat al-Nusra said that they were protecting the women from government shelling.
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The deal was negotiated by officials from Qatar and Lebanon.
