Tuesday, October 19, 2010

update.. Freed Somalia aid worker Barnard reunited with family..British Charity Worker Freed By Somali Gunmen.. .. British Charity victim of a blackmail schem..First pictures of hostage freed in Somalia

First pictures of hostage freed in Somalia



The Habar Gidir -(hawiye) number involved common criminal activity. Specially saleebaan sub-clan the only thing they do best is  kidnapping, piracy,terrorism and blackmail..General Mahammad Faarah Aidid commanded the Habar Gidir clan


A British contractor kidnapped in Somalia last week while working for Save the Children has been released from capture.
Somali gunmen freed Frans Barnard after a $100,000 ransom (around £63,500) was paid to them, according to a source close to the negotiations.
Mr Barnard revealed via telephone his six-day ordeal was at an end.
"I am well and free .... and traveling back to Adado," he said, referring to the town close to the border with Ethiopia where he was seized along with his Somali fixer last week.
Save the Children confirmed Mr Barnard, who was initially thought to hold dual Zimbabwean-British nationality, was "on his way to a place of safety".
"We continue to be concerned for him but at this point we are cautiously optimistic," said Anna Ford, the charity's spokesperson in Nairobi.
Local elders said the contractor was released to local officials, some 250km from Adado, after his kidnappers lowered their demands.
"The gunmen asked for $150,000 to free the hostage but they were only paid $100,000," one of the negotiators, speaking anonymously, said.
Another elder, Mohamed Abdulahi, said Mr Barnard was freed around 5am local time (3am BST) and denied money had changed hands.
"No ransom was paid. His release happened through negotiations," he said.
Mr Barnard's fixer was released, unharmed, hours after their capture last Thursday.
Heavily-armed men in three vehicles had burst into a guesthouse housing aid workers from several organisations in the Adado region.
More to follow...
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