Three French men released in Nigeria after being kidnapped since September

[News_Editor]

Three French men released in Nigeria after being kidnapped since September

2010-11-11 05:22:47 GMT+7 (ICT)

PARIS (BNO NEWS) -- The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday announced that three French men were released in Nigeria after they were kidnapped approximately two months ago.

The three French nationals are employees of Bourbon, France's offshore services company, and were working at an oil platform off the coast of Nigeria when they were kidnapped on September 22.

Bourbon confirmed that the three employees abducted on board of the Bourbon Alexandre were released. The men were found with good health despite the difficult conditions while in captivity. They are currently undergoing careful medical and psychological check-ups.

The three Bourbon employees will be returning to France later this week to be reunited with their relatives and friends. It was not disclosed if a ransom was paid as most hostages abducted in the region are released after some sort of payment.

"Bourbon wishes to extend its thanks to the organizations who, along with the Crisis Unit, have worked towards this liberation, including the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, the Nigerian Government and the local authorities," the French company said in a statement.

The company refused to give any information about the demands, the context, the released crew members, their families or the date of their return to France due to reasons of confidentiality and in order to preserve the privacy of the families.

The workers, along with a Thai citizen, were kidnapped in September aboard the French-flagged vessel Bourbon Alexandre during an attack on an offshore rig run by Addax Petroleum, a subsidiary of China's Sinopec.

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