A freed Chinese worker is greeted by Chinese ambassador Liu Guangyuan (R front) at the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, in Nairobi Feb. 7, 2012. Twenty-nine Chinese nationals abducted by local rebels in Sudan last month arrived on Tuesday afternoon at the Wilson Airport in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi,where they were handed over to the local Chinese embassy. Photo:Xinhua
The Foreign Ministry confirmed Tuesday evening that the 29 Chinese workers kidnapped last month by Sudanese anti-government forces have been released and have arrived safely in Nairobi.
"The 29 persons are currently in sound physical condition and in stable moods," the ministry said in a statement.
The 29 workers arrived in Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya, at 22:35 p.m. Beijing Time with the escort of a Chinese government task group and Chinese overseas diplomats, the statement said.
According to earlier reports, the workers embarked on a plane chartered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and left the area controlled by anti-government forces in Sudan Tuesday evening.
The freed workers will receive physical examinations and rest briefly in Nairobi before flying home, said the statement.
China expressed appreciation and sincere gratitude for the unremitting efforts made in the peaceful and safe rescue work by relevant countries,including Sudan and South Sudan, as well as related parties such as the ICRC, said the statement.
China also expressed gratitude for Kenya, the United Nations and other countries, organizations and people who extended support, assistance and concern over the issue.
According to the statement, leaders of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council attached great importance to the event, and made important instructions while asking the foreign ministry to make every endeavor to safely rescue the kidnapped workers.
Relevant Chinese departments such as Foreign Ministry, Chinese embassies based in countries such as Sudan, Kenya, and South Sudan had for days maintained close contacts with related countries and relevant parties such as the ICRC, and spared no effort in the rescue work, said the statement.
The release came days after a stream of China's diplomatic maneuvers and rescue work. Following the incident, the Foreign Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in Sudan immediately launched an emergency plan.
The Chinese government on Jan. 30 evening sent to Sudan a task force consisting officials from the Foreign Ministry and State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, in efforts to assist the rescue work in Sudan.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said on Monday that China had used "multiple channels and made every possible effort" to gain the release of the kidnapped workers.
A group belonging to the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA)/northern sector on Jan. 28 attacked a camp of a Chinese company operating at a road construction site in the south Kordofan state of Sudan.
A total of 47 Chinese workers were in the camp then, among whom 29 were abducted by the assailants while the other 18 managed to flee to neighboring areas. Among the latter, 17 were later found by the Sudanese army and transferred to a safe location, and one was confirmed dead after having been missing for days.
The Sudanese authorities on Tuesday handed over the body of the dead Chinese worker to the Chinese side.
Isam Awad Mutwalli, Director of the Chinese Affairs Department at Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed the Sudanese government's deep concern over the tragedy.
"This is a rare incident and will not recur. We reiterate the deeply-rooted Sudan-China ties that are witnessing development in all fields. We pledge to enhance the security measures to protect and secure all the Chinese companies operating in Sudan," he said.