French hostages tell of Syria basement ordeal

French journalists released from captivity in Syria have been speaking about their ordeal at the hands of suspected Islamist rebels. Didier Francois said the four men were chained to each other and kept in basements without natural light. His colleague Nicolas Henin added that they were “not always well treated”. Mr Henin and Mr Francois, along with Edouard Elias and Pierre Torres, were greeted by their families and President Francois Hollande on arrival in France. They had been found by Turkish soldiers on the Syrian border late on Friday. The jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) has been accused of kidnapping them. ‘Happy to be free’ They had shaved by the time they arrived at Villacoublay military airport, outside Paris. Mr Francois, 53, told reporters it was “a great joy and an immense relief, obviously to be free. Under the sky, which we haven’t seen for a long time, to breathe the fresh air, walk freely”. “It was a long haul, but we never lost hope,” he added. “From time to time, w