Sky News Arabia says its syria crew is missing

BEIRUT, Lebanon – Sky News Arabia says that it has lost contact with its team of reporters in the contested city of Aleppo in northern Syria.

The Abu Dhabi-based channel said in a statement on Thursday that reporter Ishak Moctar, cameraman Samir Kassab and a Syrian driver whose name is being withheld at his family’s request have been missing since Tuesday morning.

Sky News Arabia chief Nart Bouran says the crew is on assignment primarily to focus on the humanitarian aspects of the conflict in Aleppo, where rebels and Syrian government troops have been locked in a bloody battle since mid-2012.

The channel appealed for any information on the team’s whereabouts and for help to ensure the journalists’ safe return.

Sky News Arabia said Moctar is a Mauritanian national, while Kassab is Lebanese.

Associated Press