EXCLUSIVE: Qatar Denies Ransom Payment for Release of Japanese Journalist

November 15, 2018

Doha--A Qatari government official has denied the country's ransom payment for the release of Japanese freelance journalist Junpei Yasuda, who was kidnapped by an armed group in Syria in 2015.

"No payment was made" for Yasuda, Lolwah Rashid Al-Khater, spokeswoman for Qatar's Foreign Ministry, said in an interview with Jiji Press in Doha, the capital of the Middle East country, on Wednesday.

Yasuda, 44, was freed last month, three years and four months after he was detained. Qatar is believed to have played a role for his release.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has claimed that Qatar paid up to 3 million dollars in ransom to his captors.

But Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga and Mevlut Cavusoglu, foreign minister of Turkey, which helped negotiations on Yasuda's release, have denied ransom payment.

It is the first time that a Qatari government official has commented to Japanese media on whether ransom was paid or not over Yasuda's case.

Qatar, like Turkey, has strong connections with Syrian rebels. The first information on Yasuda's release brought to the Japanese government was from Qatar.

Lolwah said that the negotiations with the armed group were led by Turkey and the counterterrorism intelligence unit of the office of the Japanese prime minister.

Qatar offered support in intelligence activities, but was not directly involved in the negotiations, she stressed.

There is speculation that Qatar paid ransom to demonstrate to other countries its stance of making every effort for the safety of journalists.

Neighboring countries are increasingly criticizing Qatar for allegedly supporting terrorists, such as Muslim extremists, financially in the name of ransom payments.

Lolwah showed frustration at the situation, saying, "Our neighbors are trying to attack us in every single way." They are trying to "distort" even noble efforts made by Qatar, including for the release of hostages, and to make such efforts "look like a horrible act," she added. Jiji Press