A British hostage has been released from Yemen after being rescued by United Arab Emirates forces following a military intelligence operation, the UK Foreign Office said.
“The British national is safe and well, and is receiving support from British government officials. We are very grateful for the assistance of the UAE, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in a news release.
No further details were given about the hostage, or who was holding him or her captive.
But the UAE’s official news agency, WAM, said on its Twitter account that the Briton was being held by al Qaeda in the southern Yemen port city of Aden and had been transferred to the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi.
It’s the second release of a Western hostage to be announced in recent weeks.
French national Isabelle Prime, who was working for an international organization when she was kidnapped in February along with her Yemeni translator in the capital, Sanaa, was freed earlier this month.
The UAE is one of a number of nations that joined Saudi Arabia in carrying out military strikes in Yemen against Shia Houthi rebels, in an effort to restore the government of Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi.