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           App ed F ease 11401020007-8
           !144_OXMJj fforts to Free Hostages
           W
                     Knight-Ridder, The fighting, combined with the
                DAMASCUS, Syria, March 14- . Syrian military move and Carter's
                .*Jimmt Carter, whose presidency. arrival, increased speculation about
                a possible1ostage release.
           Yas bedeviled by the Iran hostage
                ;we,cris,is, arrived here today amid ef-. Optimistic statements in recent
                R4orts to free Westerners bein held weeks by.Syria, Iran'and the leader
                9 .7
                "'i,captive in Lebanon. of Heibollah also have created a
                :Z*, In arrival reimirksi Carter said climate of.expectation. Friday will
                000 mark the fifth anniversary'in cap
                that Syria, which maintains 40, tivity of American journalist Terry
           Itroops in Lebanon, is "eager`to
                     releas' Anderson, the lofigest-held hostage.
                e of the hostages,. ~'Hdwever, - Syrian and Western
                lind Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk
           sources on Tuesday cast doubt on
           21"Charaa, who received Carter, con.~ an imminent h .ostage release in
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           firmed that his government is work-. light of renewed infighting in Iran
                ,A-jng toward such a goal. . . I .. between moderates and militants
           As Charaa greeted the former
           precisely.over the hostages,
           V%U.S. president, Syrian troops tight.' While Carter said Syria was se-
           Jened their control around suburbs
                               riotis in its efforts to relpase the
           the Moslem sector of the'Leb. hostages, he was less sanguine
           ~Vanese capital, where Iranian-backed~ aboutfran.
                :.militias are believed to be holding "Those statements from Tehran
                the hostages. are equivocal, you know, one day
                Syrian troops moved after the it's a positive statement and the
                4 Iranian-supported militia Hezbollah, next day it's a rejection of the pos
                group reportedly 'responsible itive statement," Carter said in re
                Jor some of the abductio .ns,. skii- marks reminiscent of the 1979-81
                mished with the pro-Syrian Amal_~A hostage.% crisis in which Iran fre

           
                force near where the hostages area quently confounded his administra
                -saidto&qheld. tion with contradictor t'
           y ac ions.
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