Abducted Algerian Diplomats in Mali Released

The seven Algerian diplomats kidnapped Thursday in Gao, Mali, have been released Sunday, reported the local El Watan newspaper’s correspondent in Mali, while no official source has confirmed this news.The source said Algerian consul, Boualem Sias, in addition to his team have been released by their kidnappers Sunday morning.The seven diplomats have been abducted Thursday in Gao, north east Mali, by an Al-Qaeda dissident group, local media said. Their family members had been repatriated to Algeria Friday “safe and sound”, the Foreign Ministry said. Earlier Sunday, an Al-Qaeda dissident group on Sunday claimed it was behind the kidnap of seven Algerian diplomats in a town in northern Mali last week.The Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) “officially claims responsibility for the kidnap of the Algerian consul and six of his team in Gao” in northeastern Mali, the group said in a statement sent to AFP.