Geneva (ICRC) – Laurent Maurice, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) staff member abducted in eastern Chad on 9 November, is free.
Mr Maurice regained his freedom today, 6 February 2010. After 89 days in captivity, he is tired but appears to be in good health.
Another ICRC staff member, Gauthier Lefèvre, taken hostage on 22 October 2009 in West Darfur, is still being held captive. The ICRC remains very concerned about Mr Lefèvre and continues to press for his unconditional release.
"The ICRC is relieved that Laurent is now free, and happy that he will soon be back with his family and friends," said Jordi Raich, the head of the ICRC's delegation in Sudan. "We would like to express our profound gratitude to all those who helped us in one way or another during his captivity."
Mr Maurice, an agronomist, was abducted in Kawa in eastern Chad, where he was carrying out an assessment of the most recent harvest. At the time of his kidnapping, Mr Maurice, a French national, had been working in Chad for about 10 months.
For further information, please contact:
Saleh Dabbakeh, ICRC Khartoum, tel: +249 91 213 77 64
Alexandra Matijevic, ICRC Khartoum, tel: +249 183 476 464 or +249 912 17 05 76
Marco Succi, ICRC N'djamena, tel: +235 6 20 10 05
Carla Haddad Mardini, ICRC Geneva, tel: +41 22 730 3443 or +41 79 217 32 26
or visit our website: www.icrc.org