article_snippet: (CNN)ISIS militants in northern Syria released 19 Assyrian Christian hostages Sunday, an activist group said.
article_snippet: According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, all but one of 19 Assyrian Christian hostages were among the at least 220 Assyrians captured on February 23 during an attack on villages in the northern Syrian province of al-Hasakah.
article_snippet: The Syrian Observatory had said previously that a self-proclaimed ISIS court ordered the release of 29 Assyrian Christian hostages, citing an Assyrian commander.
article_snippet: The reasoning behind the release of 29 Assyrian Christian hostages was not immediately clear.
article_snippet: The reasoning behind the release was also not clear why only 19 people were let go Sunday.
article_snippet: When the decision was announced that at least some of 19 Assyrian Christian hostages would be released, Graeme Wood, with The Atlantic, said an Assyrian commander was pleased to hear about the decision, but not entirely surprised.
highlights_snippet: It's unclear what will become of the other kidnapped Assyrians .
  