MOSCOW, August 14. /TASS/. Russian diplomats and Syrian authorities continue the search for leader of the Alternativa anti-slavery movement Oleg Melnikov, who went missing during a trip to Syria’s Idlib province as part of a group of volunteers, an official at the Russian embassy in Damascus told TASS.

"Together with Syrian law enforcement officers, we are working to verify the information that we have to figure out what could have happened to Oleg Melnikov. It is not an easy task because militants control the entire Idlib province," the official stated.

"As soon as we have something to tell the media, our Foreign Ministry will make a statement," the embassy official added.