Kidnapped Swedish engineer freed in Yemen

[October 29, 2010]  SAN'A, Yemen (AP) -- Security officials say a Swedish engineer and his driver who were kidnapped by tribesmen in southern Yemen have been released.

The officials in Abyan province say the two were released Friday after tribal mediation. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.

The Swede, who works at a cement plant in Abyan, and the Yemeni driver were abducted at gunpoint shortly after leaving the plant in Batis on Thursday afternoon. Abyan's deputy governor, Saleh al-Shamsi, said the kidnappers were demanding the release of a fellow tribesman jailed in San'a.

Kidnappings are frequent in Yemen and are usually carried out by disgruntled tribesmen hoping to win concessions from the government.

[Associated Press; By AHMED AL-HAJ]

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