Spanish journalist Javier Espinosa and photographer Ricardo Garcia-Vilanova were abducted by a rebel group linked to al Qaeda known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on September 16 at a checkpoint in Raqqa province, Reuters reported.

The two journalists "were just a few kilometers from the border with Turkey and were trying to leave Syria at the time They were taken to Raqqa city," Reuters also reported.

Espinosa and Garcia had been traveling with members of the rebel Free Syrian Army who were taken by by the group but were released after 12 days, according to news reports. The abduction was not revealed until this past weekend as  negotiations with the al-Qada linked group have been ongoing.

"We have reached an impasse with the captors after many weeks of attempted mediation," Monica Preito, Espinosa's wife and fellow journalist who has covered the Syrian civil war, said at a news conference in Beirut.

"Today we appeal to the Syrian people and all armed groups to help release Javier and Ricardo who have always been committed to show the human face and suffering of the Syrian people during these very difficult times," she added.

Espinosa and Garcia-Vilanova "have covered the Syrian conflict since its beginning and have traveled to the region around 10 times," Reuters also reported.

The UN has estimated that more than 100,000 have been killed since the civil war began there two-and-a-half years ago.