Syrian Omar Hayssam, who was convicted in Romania for terrorism and brought back to the country late last week, seems to be missing again. Hayssam, who got the terrorism conviction in 2007, soon after managing to leave the country during a medical time off from arrest, and while not being monitored by the authorities, is not to be found, again.

He was supposed to appear in court on Tuesday, July 22, where he is further trialed for fraud and embezzlement, but the Prison Administration and the Bucharest Police representatives told the court they do not know of his whereabouts.

It is not yet certain whether the Syrian, who was brought back to Romania to serve his 20-year jail sentence for having orchestrated the kidnapping of three Romanian journalists in Iraq in 2005, was extradited from Syria. Romanian president Traian Basescu, from whom the first news of Hayssam's return to Romania came early Friday morning (July 19), later on said he could not confirm, nor deny whether the Syrian was brought back based on an extradition mandate, or whether he was indeed found in Syria or elsewhere.

As all eyes are on this case - Romania's only terrorism case which led to such a conviction - the Police are saying Hayssam was never in the arrest of the Bucharest Police. However, the president's spokesperson said last week Hayssam was given into the custody of the Romanian Police, and later on the same day, the Internal Affairs Minister Radu Stroe said Hayssam was in fact in the Bucharest Police arrest.

Hayssam will serve jail time not only for terrorism, but for fraud, and for illegal border trespassing as well. He will however serve the biggest sentence of all, 20 years for terrorism.

There were several hiccups in the high level communication in this case, after president Basescu hinted Romania could have made an unauthorized operation in another country to bring Hayssam back, and after the PM Victor Ponta said the operation was in fact legal and had the Government's approval.

Hayssam is a Syrian and Romanian citizen who managed to leave Romania for Syria soon after being freed from preventive arrest on medical grounds back in 2007, when he was finally convicted to 20 years in jail. His escape on a ship which was transporting sheep led to resignations of the chief of intelligence and of the chief prosecutor at the time, for having failed to monitor him after being released on medical grounds. Several doctors afterwards confirmed Hayssam's cancer diagnostis.

Two journalists from Prima TV, Sorin Dumitru Miscoci and Marie-Jeanne Ion and one from the daily Romania Libera, Eduard Ovidiu Ohanesian were kidnapped in Baghdad in 2005. Omar Hayssam was found to have staged the kidnapping of the three journalists. Soon after the three were kidnapped, he claimed to have been contacted by the kidnappers, who had asked him for an USD 4 million ransom. The person who organized the kidnapping was Hayssam's friend Mohammad Munaf, who was the three journalists' guide in Baghdad.

The Romanians' release was confirmed 55 days after being kidnapped, and after international media had rumored the journalists had been released much earlier with the help of an American commando group. Later on however the journalists confirmed the 55-day kidnapping.

In 2008, Mohammad Munaf was sentenced to 10 years in jail, a smaller sentence than Hayssam's, due mainly to his collaboration with the prosecutors. He managed to escape the death penalty in his home country Iraq, where he was also trialed after being arrested in the kidnapping case. According to Romanian media, the chances of Munaf been extradited to Romania are slim.

editor@romania-insider.com