Posted on 10/29/2013 5:13:02 PM PDT by Pan_Yan
NIAMEY/PARIS (Reuters) - Four French hostages kidnapped in Niger by al Qaeda's north African wing have been released following secret talks with officials from the West African country, ending three years in captivity.
...
Any conditions of the release were not immediately clear, but, speaking to French television on Tuesday on his arrival in Niamey to collect the men and take them home, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius denied the government had paid a ransom.
...
The men's release gave Hollande a boost just a day after a poll showed he had become the most unpopular French president on record, with the Socialist leader hit by anger over tax hikes, unemployment and rows over the government's immigration policy.
...
There was no news about the fate of three other men - a Swede, Dutch and South African - who were also held by AQIM. Two other French nationals are also still being held after being taken by armed groups in Mali.
Hollande has said Paris has ended a policy of paying ransoms for hostages, but suspicion that it still does despite official denials has been a source of tension with the United States.
France brushed off an allegation by a former U.S. diplomat that it paid a $17 million ransom in vain for the release of the three hostages abducted in 2010 from Niger.
(Excerpt) Read more at globalpost.com ...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.