This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/8022146.stm
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Somali kidnappers free aid staff | Somali kidnappers free aid staff |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Two European aid workers with Medecins Sans Frontieres who were abducted by gunmen in Somalia nine days ago have been released. | Two European aid workers with Medecins Sans Frontieres who were abducted by gunmen in Somalia nine days ago have been released. |
| The two men were kidnapped in their car with their Somali bodyguards in Hudur, Bakol region, on 19 April. | The two men were kidnapped in their car with their Somali bodyguards in Hudur, Bakol region, on 19 April. |
| The Belgian doctor and Dutch nurse had reportedly been carrying out a nutrition study. | |
| Sheikh Aden Yare, of the Islamist al-Shabab, told Reuters news agency the pair had been freed without condition. | Sheikh Aden Yare, of the Islamist al-Shabab, told Reuters news agency the pair had been freed without condition. |
| "This will not happen again," he was quoted as saying. | "This will not happen again," he was quoted as saying. |
| 'Tough talks' | 'Tough talks' |
| The BBC Somali Service says al-Shabab controls the area where the aid workers were seized, but the kidnappers were local gunmen, not thought to be affiliated to any group. | The BBC Somali Service says al-Shabab controls the area where the aid workers were seized, but the kidnappers were local gunmen, not thought to be affiliated to any group. |
| Hassan Mohamed, an elder involved in the negotiations, told AFP news agency: "After days of tough talks, we finally succeeded in freeing the hostages and now they are in the hands of the elders." | Hassan Mohamed, an elder involved in the negotiations, told AFP news agency: "After days of tough talks, we finally succeeded in freeing the hostages and now they are in the hands of the elders." |
| The Horn of Africa nation is one of the world's most dangerous places for relief workers. | The Horn of Africa nation is one of the world's most dangerous places for relief workers. |
| The UN estimates 35 aid staff were killed last year and 26 abducted in Somalia, which has not had a functioning government since 1991. | The UN estimates 35 aid staff were killed last year and 26 abducted in Somalia, which has not had a functioning government since 1991. |
| The dead included three MSF workers - a Kenyan doctor, a French logistician, and a Somali driver - caught in a roadside bomb in the town of Kismayo in January 2008. | The dead included three MSF workers - a Kenyan doctor, a French logistician, and a Somali driver - caught in a roadside bomb in the town of Kismayo in January 2008. |
| Some three million people - half of Somalia's population - are estimated to need food aid after years of unrest. | Some three million people - half of Somalia's population - are estimated to need food aid after years of unrest. |
| Al-Shabab has sworn to topple Somalia's fragile federal transitional government, which is backed by African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu. | Al-Shabab has sworn to topple Somalia's fragile federal transitional government, which is backed by African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu. |