Romanian president 'certain' hostages in Iraq are still alive

BUCHAREST - President Traian Basescu said Monday he was "certain" that three Romanian journalists held hostage in Iraq were still alive.
Authorities are doing everything possible to bring the three, who were seized on March 28, home "safe and sound", he told reporters.
The journalists were seized on March 28 along with a US-Iraqi businessman identified as their guide.
Basescu made the comments during a visit to the Black Sea port of Constanta but gave no further details of possible negotiations with the kidnappers of Marie-Jeanne Ion, Sorin Miscoci and Eduard Ohanesian, seized near Baghdad with Mohamed Munaf.
It was the second time in less than a week that the presidency has said the hostages are still alive. On Wednesday it called on the kidnappers to free Ion, the only woman among the four, on "humanitarian and religious" grounds.
The kidnappers had set a deadline of last Wednesday for Bucharest to announce the withdrawal of its 860 troops from Iraq to save the journalists' lives, in a video shown on an Arab news channel.
Foreign Minister Razvan Ungureanu made a lightning visit to Syria on Thursday for talks with his counterpart Faruq al-Shara about the hostages.

05/02/2005 13:16 GMT