Wounded journalist smuggled out of Syria

A British photographer escaped from Syria Tuesday after being trapped for days in the besieged central city of Homs, activist groups said.

Campaign group Avaaz said it had arranged the escape of Paul Conroy, of London's Sunday Times, from Baba Amr, a rebel-held district of the city where Marie Colvin, a veteran war correspondent at the same newspaper, and French photographer Remi Ochlik .

French President Nicolas Sarkozy later said injured French reporter Edith Bouvier had also been evacuated, but he later retracted the confirmation.

Thirteen Syrian activists who were helping smuggle out at least one of the two were killed in the operation, one of the groups said.

The two journalists were injured last week in a government rocket attack on the rebel-controlled neighborhood of Baba Amr in central Homs. Two other Western journalists — American Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik were killed in the same attack. Their bodies and two other uninjured foreign reporters — Frenchman William Daniels and Spaniard Javier Espinosa — may still be in Homs.

Their harrowing ordeal shined a light on the horrors of life under siege in Homs, a stronghold for government opponents waging an uprising against President Bashar Assad's authoritarian rule. Hundreds have been killed in more than three weeks of relentless shelling of the city, many of them dying when they ventured out to forage for food as a humanitarian crisis grew more dire by the day.

Avaaz said it had worked with Syrian activists, several of whom had been killed in the last few days during attempts to evacuate foreign journalists and wounded Syrians from Homs and to bring medical supplies into Baba Amr.

"Paul Conroy's rescue today is a huge relief but this must be tempered with the news that three remain unaccounted for and with our respects for the incredibly courageous activists who died during the evacuation attempts," said Avaaz Executive Director Ricken Patel in a statement.

The Sunday Times said Conroy, who was wounded in the leg in last week's attack, was in good health.

"He is in good shape and in good spirits," it said.

One Avaaz campaigner said journalists Javier Espinosa, Edith Bouvier and William Daniels were believed to be still in Homs.

• Add to Google

Dozens evacuated from Syria

03:25

The French Foreign Ministry said it could not confirm or deny the report about Bouvier. "We ask people to be extremely cautious with this kind of information," spokesman Bernard Valero told a news briefing in Paris.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

"We have no elements at this stage which allow us to confirm what has been published by certain media. No confirmation concerning the situation of our compatriot," Valero said.

British media quoted Conroy's family expressing relief over his escape to Lebanon.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

"I have heard that he is out. All I can say is that we are delighted and overjoyed at the news," Conroy's wife Kate said.

Conroy had worked closely with Colvin, including in Libya, where they were among the few journalists reporting from inside the port city Misrata during a prolonged siege by troops loyal to former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

Follow us on Twitter:

More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

• Gunmen open fire on bus in Pakistan, 18 killed
• Police evict Occupy London protesters from camp
• Syria OKs new constitution as shelling continues
• Report: Plot to kill Putin foiled
• PhotoBlog: Greece kicks off Lent with 'flour war'
• Report documents Iran's efforts to quell opposition heading up to elections