A young French mother whose daughter had been smuggled out of the country by her father arrived home with the two-year-old girl on Wednesday after they were reunited earlier in Turkey. Meriam Rhaiem, 25, made headlines in March with an emotional appeal to French authorities to recognise her baby girl as "the youngest French hostage".
Mother and daughter arrived at Villacoublay air base outside Paris at 2:15 am Wednesday (0115 GMT) aboard a plane chartered by the French interior ministry.
"It's a moment of great emotion with the arrival of Meriam Rhaiem and her daughter Assia, after months of waiting," said Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve who went out onto the tarmac to meet the plane.
"The trials this young woman has endured, fighting hard for the return of her daughter who was kidnapped in circumstances which we aren't clear," he added.
He thanked the Turkish authorities for their role in the family reunion which led to "the best possible outcome".
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