An American journalist kidnapped in Syria nearly two years ago was freed and handed over to U.N. representatives after Qatari mediation helped lead to his release from the Al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra, or Nusra Front.

Jabhat al-Nusra released Peter Theo Curtis, 45, on Sunday, after Curtis was abducted in October 2012 in Antakya, Turkey, where he planned to enter Syria. Peter Theo Curtis had changed his name from Theo Padnos, the name under which he continued to write, to make it easier for him travel in the Arab world, according to a statement from the Curtis family.

Curtis' abduction had not been previously advertised. But U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry confirmed that he was safe outside Syria and will be reunited with his family soon. Curtis' release comes just days after the beheading of journalist James Foley, who was captured in Syria in 2012.

Kerry said in a statement, "Every waking hour, our thoughts and our faith remain with the Americans still held hostage and with their families, and we continue to use every diplomatic, intelligence, and military tool at our disposal to find them and bring our fellow citizens home."

The U.N. said Curtis was handed over to peacekeepers in Al Rafid in the Israeli-held Golan Heights in southwest Syria.

“My heart is full at the extraordinary, dedicated, incredible people, too many to name individually, who have become my friends and have tirelessly helped us over these many months,” said Curtis' mother, Nancy Curtis, of Cambridge, Massachusetts. “Please know that we will be eternally grateful.”

She added, “We are so relieved that Theo is healthy and safe and that he is finally headed home after his ordeal, but we are also deeply saddened by the terrible, unjustified killing last week of his fellow journalist, Jim Foley, at the hands of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, ISIS."

Curtis’ mother said while the family does not know the exact terms that were negotiated between the U.S., Qatar and her son's captors, “we were repeatedly told by representatives of the Qatari government that they were mediating for Theo’s release on a humanitarian basis without the payment of money.”

Footage of the American was released on June 30, showing a disheveled Curtis with long hair and beard, but appearing to be in good health.

Speaking in a video obtained by Al Jazeera, Curtis read from a prepared script stating his name and profession, saying he was a journalist from Boston, Massachusetts.

Commenting on his treatment, Curtis said he "had everything" he needed and "everything has been perfect, food, clothing, even friends now."

But in another video obtained by The New York Times, Curtis is seen with both hands bound, begging for his life while a man armed with an automatic weapon stands next to him, the newspaper said. “I have three days left. Three days — please do something,” Curtis begged, according to The Times.

The New York Times said that Curtis had reportedly been imprisoned in the same cell with Matthew Schrier, an American photojournalist who escaped in June 2013. Schrier told The New York Times that his captors starved and tortured him, beating the soles of his feet until he could not longer walk.

Schrier escaped their cell by standing on Curtis’ back and wriggling through an opening in the wall after unraveling some wires, the newspaper reported. Curtis was heavier-set and became stuck trying to crawl through the opening and urged Schrierto go on without him, according to The New York Times. At the request of Curtis’ family, the newspaper agreed not to reveal his identity in its reports of Schrier’s story.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), at least 67 journalists have been killed in Syria since the start of the uprising, highlighting the risks of reporting from the country.

Dozens of journalists covering the civil war have been seized since the conflict began in March 2011, with many others still missing.