American humanitarian aid worker Jeffery Woodke, kidnapped in October 2016 in Niger, and French journalist Olivier Dubois, also released after nearly two years in captivity, arrived at Niamey airport on Monday.
According to security sources in Niger, Woodke was kidnapped by Islamic fundamentalists on October 14, 2016 and taken to Mali.
Dubois, who was abducted on April 8, 2021 in Gao, northern Mali, was abducted by the Islamic fundamentalist alliance Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM), the main extremist movement in the Sahel, allied to al-Qaeda .
“I feel tired, but I’m fine,” Dubois said as he stepped off the plane, smiling and visibly moved.
“It means a lot to me to be here, to be free. I want to pay tribute to Niger for his wisdom in this delicate mission and to France and all those who allowed me here today”he added, to the journalists waiting for the two hostages.
Next to him, leaning on a stick, stood Jeffery Woodke.
“The hostages were recovered safe and sound by Nigerian authorities before being handed over to French and US authorities,” said Nigerian Interior Minister Hamadou Souley.
Olivier Dubois worked for the newspapers Libération and Le Point and the magazine Jeune Afrique and has been living and working in Mali since 2015, when he was kidnapped.
The journalist announced his abduction in a video posted on social media on May 5, 2021.
In Paris, the non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) welcomed the release of Olivier Dubois, noting that it was “the longest French journalist held hostage since the war in Lebanon”.
“We have received reassuring news several times in recent months, and very recently: he appeared to be in good condition, but we were concerned about the length of his detention,” said RSF Secretary-General Christrophe Deloire, quoted by AFP.
“It was a huge relief,” he added.
Still in the French capital, President Emmanuel Macron expressed his “huge relief” at the release of the journalist, who “will soon be back in France”.
In a post on the social network Twitter, Macron said he had already spoken to Dubois on the phone and was “deeply grateful” to Niger for the efforts it made to release the journalist.
In a brief statement to the press, the French foreign ministry expressed “joy and immense relief” at the release and declined to comment on whether a ransom has been paid for the release.
In Washington, a Biden source assured that no ransom had been paid or any commitment made for the release of Jeffrey Woodke.
Source: DN
