Four locals kidnapped in Mandera county near Kenya border with Somalia last week were released, the police statement issued confirmed.
The poluce said al-Shabab fighters who abducted the two doctors, a patient and an ambulance drived have released four Kenyans.
George Seda, Northeastern regional police commander, said two paramedics, a driver, and a patient who were hijacked in the El Wak area as they raced to a hospital were freed on Thursday.
“Efforts were made to ensure (their) safe return,” Seda said on the phone without elaborating whether ransom was paid to secure the release of the Kenyans.
The assailants ambushed an ambulance belonging to the Mandera county government in the country’s northeast region as it transported the patient to a hospital.
Lafey Member of County Assembly Adan Hussein Rahoy confirmed that the victims had been released and arrived home safely.
He said they were being attended by medics, noting that no ransom was paid to the insurgents since local elders negotiated their release.
Rahoy said the four Kenyans had been moved to the terrorists’ stronghold in El-Adde, Somalia, near the shared border, adding the ambulance is still in the possession of the attackers and the elders are attempting to broker a deal to have the vehicle released back to Kenya.
