DR Congo: 2 kidnapped British tourists released

By Godfrey Olukya

ARU, Democratic Republic of Congo (AA) - Two British tourists who were kidnapped on Friday in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been released, according to local and British officials.

The 2 tourists were kidnapped while visiting the Virunga National Park where mountain gorillas are a tourist attraction. The kidnapping took place near the village of Kibati, north of Goma, in North Kivu.

A security officer in North Kivu, Lt. Juma Mbongo, told Anadolu Agency that the two tourists had been released.

''I have received information that the two British tourists have been released. I have not yet gotten the details but I can confirm that they have been released,'' said Mbongo.

A park ranger, Rachel Makissa Baraka, was killed during the kidnapping while trying to stop the kidnappers from grabbing the tourists.

"I am delighted to announce that two British nationals who were held hostage in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been released," Britain's foreign minister, Boris Johnson, said in a statement.

"I pay tribute to the DRC authorities and the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation for their tireless help during this terrible case.

"My thoughts are now with the family of Virunga Park ranger Rachel Makissa Baraka who was killed during the kidnapping, and with the injured driver and the released British nationals as they recover from this traumatic incident."

Kidnapping and killing of foreigners by militia is common in Democratic Republic of Congo. This March two UN specialists were kidnapped and killed, while several Catholic priests have also been kidnapped.