21 February 2016•Update: 22 February 2016
ANKARA
Three journalists working for Anadolu Agency, kidnapped by PKK terrorists for over 48 hours in Turkey's southeastern Mardin province, have been freed.
Anadolu Agency correspondent Rauf Maltas (31), photojournalist Onur Coban (36) and cameraman Kenan Yesilyurt (26) were assigned last week to Mardin's Nusaybin district to cover stories in the region.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu separately talked to the trio of journalists by phone following their release.
The officials were also briefed by Anadolu Agency Director General Senol Kazanci regarding the journalists' health.
"We wish a speedy recovery for our friends," Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told reporters in northern Ordu province. Kurtulmus went on to voice hope the trio would soon be able return to work.
The PKK -- considered a terrorist organization also by the U.S. and the EU -- resumed its 30-year armed campaign against the Turkish state in late July 2015.
