On his recent trip to Syria, Senator John McCain took a photo with several rebels who are suspected of being responsible for the kidnapping of 11 Lebanese Shiite pilgrims last year.
The Lebanese press first identified the men as Mohamed Nour and Abu Ibrahim — the two suspects.
In an email to BuzzFeed, a spokesman for the senator denied that McCain knew about the two men: “None of the individuals the senator planned to meet with was named Mohamad Nour or Abu Ibrahim. A number of other Syrian commanders joined the meeting, but none of them identified himself as Mohamad Nour or Abu Ibrahim.”
There is still some doubt as to whether those men are actually Mohamed Nour and Abu Ibrahim.
McCain has been a staunch supporter of the rebel fight against Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and he made the trip to show solidarity with their cause.
McCain’s office originally released the photo of the senator’s trip to Syria.