Imtiaz Sooliman – Sooliman on captured photojournalist Shiraaz Mohamed

Imtiaz Sooliman
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AI: Summary ©

The CEO of Gvision, banned from speaking to anyone inside the prison, but gave a video of a member of the group who was being held captive. The CEO said that the situation was being worked on, and that the givers were working on a plan to get the situation resolved. The givers were also working on a plan to get their money back.

AI: Summary ©

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			Uh, we've seen that video, the
clip a few minutes ago, with
		
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			Shiraz making a very earnest
appeal for help. How did you get
		
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			to this point in the process?
		
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			We have been involved for two
years, three months now, trying
		
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			the different groups, trying
speaking to people inside Syria,
		
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			outside Syria, and, you know,
trying to look at Shiva, trying to
		
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			find which group was he was, took
him the circumstances, and a whole
		
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			lot of it's a long story, but
finally, on the 12th of April, we
		
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			had some fantastic information,
some personal we can't mention
		
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			right now, gave us very strategic
information. And as a result of
		
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			that information, we finally got
to the people who eventually gave
		
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			us a video on Friday, the 26th of
April. I mean that video, which is
		
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			shown by you, should have made
that appeal that in itself to be
		
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			taken out from captivity.
		
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			Do we have any idea where exactly
he's being held and the conditions
		
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			around his captivity right now,
		
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			from the information we had
previously reliability commission,
		
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			and which is the standard case in
all captivity cases, you can move
		
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			from place to place. We know that
he has moved from place to place.
		
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			So we don't really know where he
is right now. But that is a
		
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			standard process. From what we
were told that he was well looked
		
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			after. There was no problem about
him being looked after, but ways
		
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			we don't know. And when I say,
well, looked after, it depends on
		
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			the type of houses or type of
location these people stay in
		
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			there, good house, the situation
will be good. If the underground
		
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			tunnel, it will be an underground
tunnel. So it varies from time to
		
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			time, the places where it stays,
where it's taken, the availability
		
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			of resources, what is given to
eat, all those kind of things, but
		
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			overall, it's been well looked
after.
		
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			MTS. We want to get a sense of
where to in the process. Do we go
		
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			from here? Have there been any
ransom demands? Did you have any
		
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			information on that note for us?
Now, it's just a first step in the
		
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			first step. After two years, three
months. There were a lot of other
		
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			things that happened, but from
next week, they're giving us
		
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			video. They probably give
		
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			it to the family. You know the
family has seen it, and I'm sure
		
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			sometimes this week, some more
information will come through, and
		
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			maybe the demands will come
through. Then will Shiraz be able
		
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			to communicate with his family and
loved ones at all. You've dealt
		
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			with a number of cases of these,
this kind of nature. And
		
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			sometimes, if not always, the
kidnapped, the hostage, is allowed
		
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			to speak to loved ones at home, if
only for proof of life at that.
		
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			No, they won't get a chance to
speak, because speaking to the
		
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			family is the video. You can only
speak through the video to the
		
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			family and those who are dealing
with trouble trying to get him
		
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			out, but a direct call to the
family that will have happened
		
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			in tears. Can you share with us
any more information on the
		
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			process going forward? What will
you as gift of the givers do? What
		
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			will be your next initial step?
Now,
		
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			we've got a lot of processes to go
ahead. One is we'll wait for them
		
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			for their feedback or what the
demands are, but have other
		
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			systems in place, which I
definitely cannot discuss now,
		
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			which will harm the case, but at
the appropriate side, we will
		
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			mention exactly what we're doing
and what steps we've got in place.
		
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			There's a lot of things to do now,
but the video we're waiting for
		
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			the video to be able to do what
you're going to do next, right?
		
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			What are the usual demands of
kidnappers in cases like the same
		
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			tiers,
		
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			commentation, nothing. It's all
about money. It's a pure business,
		
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			and it varies from 1.5 million to
2 million to 4 million to 12
		
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			million euros of dollars on a type
of hostage to country. You know
		
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			how important the person is, what
the status is related to
		
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			government. So the price varies. I
don't know from place to place,
		
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			which group is holding him, how
desperate they have to get that
		
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			kind of him or her for that
better. So if you never see the
		
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			one, it's always about money, but
sometimes it's not about money.
		
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			It's about exchange of prisoners.
It's strategic capture of targets.
		
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			And they don't want any money, but
they want their friends released
		
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			from prison, which, of course, one
was in this case, because they
		
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			haven't captured something they
can get because there's this
		
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			country's work on so there's no
real government, so there's nobody
		
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			negotiate with to take people out
of seven, and they can't capture a
		
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			South African to negotiate with a
Syrian. That's never going to
		
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			work, I see. And what are the
chances of you negotiating down
		
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			the price on Shiraz right now?
Sorry, I didn't get a question.
		
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			What are the chances of you
negotiating down the ransom on
		
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			Shiraz right now? Whatever that
figure stands, if it does come to
		
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			that, yeah, well, we don't pay
rental money. No, that's our
		
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			standard policy. We don't pay to
spend some money. Of course, we
		
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			don't stop the families from
things to rent some money. But the
		
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			family themselves cannot afford
whatever it is going to be in the
		
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			millions they're going to talk
about. It's probably not going to
		
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			be 5000 or $10,000 obviously, we
know it comes in the millions. So
		
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			the family cannot afford that kind
of money. Governments want to.
		
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			So we're going to be at a
stainless and that's why we're
		
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			going to find other ways to solve
the storm. Alright? MTR Suleiman,
		
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			we are out of time. He's the CEO
of gift of the givers joining us
		
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			on the line from Peter marisberg.