Puntland leader vows to stay in regional capital until release of kidnapped MSF volunteers
Posted by African Press International on December 31, 2007
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Madrid (Spain) The President of the Somali semi-autonomous territory of Puntland, Adde Musse, has pledged to stay in Bosasso, capital of the region until the release of the two volunteers of Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF), Spanish diplomatic sources told APA on Sunday.
Adde Musse reaffirmed that he was quite “interested in the resolution” of such a situation following the abduction last Wednesday of Mercedes Garcia, a Spanish doctor and Pilar Bauza, an Argentinian nurse by gunmen in central Bosasso. According to Spanish ambassador to Kenya, Nicolas Martin Cinto, who is in Bosasso to attend the talks with the abductors, the two MSF doctors are “in good health”. Unofficial sources reported that the gunmen demand a US$250,000 ransom in exchange for the two hostages. Last Wednesday, Spain-based MSF chairwoman, Paula Farias, appealed to the kidnappers and to the Puntland authorities for a negotiated solution to avoid any clash for the release of the MSF volunteers. “We have to preserve the physical integrity of our colleagues, insisted Ms Farias who has been in Somalia for 16 years amidst very hard conditions, particularly at the security level Published by Korir, API/APN africanpress@chello.no |
