Kidnapped Finns And Austrian Hostages Freed From Yemen

Remember that Austrian and Finnish couple that were kidnapped from an electronics store in Sanaa,Yemen late last year?   And the al-Qaeda-linked captors even had the Austrian, Dominik Neubauer, plead for his life on video in February, 2013 in exchange for particular ransom demands? Lucky for them, they have finally been freed  on the border of Oman.

No details other than residents in Hawf, the village on the Oman border where they wound up, helped free them.

“The three hostages were released overnight Wednesday and they are now with Omani authorities,” said the official on condition of anonymity.

“They were kidnapped by al-Qaeda militants,” the official added.

[snip]

There was no immediate confirmation from Oman about their whereabouts.

At the end of March, the foreign minister of Finland held talks in Sanaa with President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi about the fate of the hostages.

[snip]

Most kidnappings of foreigners in Yemen are carried out by members of its powerful tribes who use them as bargaining chips in disputes with the central government.

Hundreds of people have been abducted over the past 15 years. Almost all have been freed unharmed.

I'm thinking they will think twice about traveling to the hell holes of the world.