June 15, 2017•Update: June 15, 2017
By Pascal Mulegwa
KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo
Two humanitarian workers of the International Committee of the Red Cross, who were kidnapped last week in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have been released, a regional administrator told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.
"They were released by their kidnappers this [Thursday] morning and found in Kaseghe about five kilometers from where they were kidnapped," Joy Bokele, administrator of the Lubero territory in North Kivu province said.
The two humanitarian workers were released "without any ransom paid either by the government or the ICRC," Bokele said, adding that they were traumatized and wounded.
The workers were kidnapped on June 7 by an armed gang in Kiamasamba village in the troubled province.
They were part of an ICRC team who had been providing humanitarian assistance for some 5,000 families in distress in some parts of the North Kivu province. The organization had suspended distributing food and essential commodities in the area following the abduction.
Kidnapping and killing of Congolese and foreign personnel of international organizations are frequent in eastern DRC especially in North Kivu due to the presence of dozens of militia groups.
On Wednesday, about ten people including Congolese soldiers were killed during an attack on the town of Nyakakoma by Mai Mai militants.
