Seven Filipino sailors who were kidnapped in Nigeria last month have been released and will return home, the Philippine government said on Tuesday.
In September, a dozen crew members on a Swiss-owned vessel that was making its way from Lagos to Port Harcourt in Nigeria had been abducted by armed men, and among those kidnapped were seven Filipinos, GMA News reported.
The Philippine embassies in Abuja and Bern coordinated with authorities in Nigeria and Switzerland to get additional information on the possible whereabouts of the abducted crew members. The motive for the kidnappings was not known.
On Wednesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said all 12 crew members were released on Sunday. Ambassador to Nigeria Shirley Ho-Vicario said the seven Filipinos are now in Zurich, Switzerland, and will be flown to Manila.
The Office of Migrant Worker Affairs has notified and extended assistance to the families of the kidnapped Filipinos in the Philippines.