A Christian man taken hostage by Islamic State along with more than 200 others has spoken about his time in the militant group's captivity.
IS kidnapped the believers on February 23rd whilst retreating from town's in Syria's north-eastern province of Al-Hasakah.
A small number have been released after a ransom was paid.
'Peter' asked for his real name to be kept secret when he spoke to media for the first time since being freed.
He said: "They entered our village at five in the morning, while everyone was sleeping. Some of them were Syrians, some were Chinese, some Russian - people who didn't speak Arabic.
"They took 17 men, three women and one young girl and put us on the back of pick-up trucks with our heads covered."
According to The Times he said: "We don't know why they took us - we didn't do anything".
Premier reported last month how thousands of Christians were having to flee their homes in Syria in the face of Islamic State attacks.
Believers had already been forced to abandon their lives in Iraq by the group.
Reports now suggest at least 12 mainly Christian Syrian villages have been captured by the Muslim jihadis.
Images show entire families taking what belongings they can in plastic bags and boarding trucks and buses to leave the region.
A Monthly Gift Of $11 Makes A World Of Difference
In a world of fake news there’s never been a greater need for quality Christian journalism. Premier’s mission is to provide the Church with the most up to date and relevant news, told from a Christian perspective. But we can’t do it without you.
Unlike many websites we haven't put up a paywall — we want to keep our journalism free at the point of need and as open as we can. Premier’s news output takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. No one in the USA is sharing news like we are across radio, magazines and online so please help us to continue that today.
For a monthly gift of $11 or more we’d also be able to send you a free copy of the brand new Premier Bible, a wonderful Anglicised version of the NLT packed with exclusive bonus content, reading plan and resources to help you get the most out of scripture.
Your monthly support will make a world of difference. Thank you.
Support Us
Article by Antony Bushfield
Antony Bushfield is a multimedia journalist for Premier.