Abducted UN staff member released

The Office of the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia has welcomed the release on 7 February of Rolf Helmrich, a UN employee abducted earlier near the southern town of Kismayo, the UN said in a statement. Helmrich, a 60 year-old German national, is a member of the UN field security team serving in the country. He was abducted at 11:30 GMT on 29 January, about 45 km north of the regional capital, Kismayo, by unknown gunmen. He was released on Saturday night and was flown to Nairobi on Sunday. The UN expressed its appreciation to the Juba Valley Alliance (JVA), which controls the area, for its efforts "in effecting the release of Helmrich" said the statement. Somali sources in Kismayo told IRIN that the JVA had negotiated the release of Helmrich, who was being held near the town of Jilib, some 180 km north of Kismayo. "They [JVA], along with NGOs operating in the region, were responsible for his release," said one of the sources. The captors were "known criminals from Mogadishu", said another. "The JVA has reportedly vowed to track them down and bring them to book", he added. "Now that he [Helmrich] is out, they feel they have a free hand to deal with them." Helmrich is the latest of several aid workers to have been abducted by freelance militias allied to one faction or another over the past few years. The militias have usually demanded a ransom before releasing their abductees.