The leader of the Lebanese group Hizbullah on Tuesday told family members of Lebanese citizens missing in Syria that he would work with President Bashar Assad to try to learn the fate of their loved ones. Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, a strong Syrian ally, issued the pledge during a meeting with about a dozen family members of Lebanese who have been missing for years or were detained during the long period when Syria kept its military in the tiny Mediterranean country.

Nasrallah’s group had successfully worked in the past for the release of dozens of Arab prisoners who were held by Israel. It was the first time that Nasrallah had said he will work to learn what happened to Lebanese held or missing in Syria.