Four Kenyans Kidnapped By Al Shabaab Freed

UPDATE: The four Kenyans who were kidnapped by suspected Al-Shabaab militants on Tuesday night, November 1 have been released.

Lafey MCA Adan Hussein Rahoy stated, according to Citizen Digital, that three of the four captives were released on Wednesday, November 2 while the driver of the ambulance arrived home in one piece on Thursday, November 3.

No ransom was paid to the insurgents according to Rahoy, who said local elders negotiated the quartet's release. He however stated that the ambulance was still in the possession of the militants and that the elders are currently negotiating to have it released.

Three out of four Kenyans who were kidnapped by suspected Al-Shabaab militants on Tuesday night, November 1 were rescued by the country's security forces in collaboration with their counterparts in Somalia.

The four were abducted by the militants who carjacked an ambulance which was rushing a patient to Elwak Sub-County Hospital in Mandera County.

Mandera County Commissioner Onesmus Kyatha, while confirming the incident, noted that arrangements were made to bring the trio back from Somalia either on Thursday, November 3 or Friday, November 4.

Al Shabaab soldiers in training. /AL JAZEERA

The fourth person, the driver of the ambulance, is still in the custody of the militants.

The three are Moulid Abdi (a patient), his relative Aden Dai and Lafey hospital paramedic Abdirashid Billow Hussein.

Kyatha also noted that he is collaborating with his counterpart in Somalia's Gedo region to ensure the safe return of the driver and the ambulance.

It was reported that the driver of the ambulance was driving the militants to their suspected hideout in the interior parts of the country situated in the Horn of Africa.

Lafey Member of Parliament Mohamed Abdiker commended the Kenyan police and Somali security forces for a job well done.

"I would thank our gallant officers who have worked with their counterparts in Somalia and returned three of the abducted persons to their homes safely", said Abdiker.

Head of Ambulance Services in Mandera County, Fatima Noor revealed that the vehicle was at Kurkura village near Elwak along Lafey road when it was attacked.

Despite security forces linking the attack to Al-Shabaab, the militant group was yet to claim responsibility for the attack.

In February 2022, multiple security forces launched a manhunt after a Kenyan doctor was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in Fino, Mandera County.

Police said that the four armed men from Somalia abducted three people from the Fino Health Centre; that is, two locals from the area and one non-local.