UN denies payment of ransom to release its officials kidnapped in Abayn

ADEN, Aug 13 (YPA) – The United Nations reported that it had not paid a ransom for the release of a number of its employees who have been kidnapped by al-Qaeda since February of last year 2022, in Abyan province, southern Yemen.

The United Nations Coordinator in Yemen, David Gresley, confirmed that no ransom was paid in order to release five UN employees who were kidnapped by Al-Qaeda.

“We at the United Nations do not pay the ransom, and this often leads to prolonged detention, because the hostage-takers have to understand that the ransom money will not come,” Mr. David Gressly, the United Nations Resident Coordinator / Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, said in a statement on Saturday.

Gressly added, “I will not go into details, but there are strenuous efforts made by many parties inside and outside the United Nations in order to work for their release,” without giving further details about the release process.

In the other hand, some sources stated that the mediator between Al Qaeda and the UAE acquired an amount of one million dollars in return for the efforts he made, and handed over an amount of 2 million dollars, which equals two billion seven hundred million riyals, according to the price of the dollar in Aden city.

Reports noted that the UAE paid a ransom of $3 million to Al-Qaeda for the release of the five employees of the UN. Political observers considered that the ransom paid by the UAE would be an indirect support to win the loyalty of terrorist groups in the Yemeni areas controlled by the coalition.

AA