Five United Nations security staff who were kidnapped in Yemen by al Qaeda militants 18 months ago have been released, the United Nations said on Friday.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the release and "reiterates that kidnapping is an inhumane and unjustifiable crime, and calls for the perpetrators to be held accountable," a U.N. spokesperson said.
The staff - four from Yemen and one from Bangladesh - were in "very good health and good spirits, despite everything that they went through," the top U.N. official in Yemen, David Gressly, told reporters.The U.N. staff were kidnapped in Yemen's southern region of Abyan on Feb. 11, 2022. Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has used a conflict between a Saudi-led coalition and the Iran-aligned Houthis to enhance its influence.
Peace initiatives have seen increased momentum since Riyadh and Tehran in March agreed to restore diplomatic ties severed in 2016.
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