Somalia: German Aid Worker Kidnapped in Somalia Seven Years Ago Pleads for Release
Mogadishu (Smn) — Sonja Nientiet, a German nurse who was abducted in Mogadishu seven years ago, has made her first public appearance, pleading for immediate release and a return to her home country.
In a video released on YouTube, filmed from her captivity in Somalia, Nientiet called for urgent intervention to secure her freedom. “I ask for immediate help to save my life and be brought back to Germany,” she said in the video.
Nientiet was kidnapped on May 2, 2018, while working for the German Red Cross. Her abduction took place at the organization’s compound in the Zoobe area of the capital.
Her captors, who have stated they have no ties to Al-Shabaab or ISIS, demanded a $20 million ransom, threatening to hand her over to the ISIS terrorist group if their demands were not met.
The German military, in cooperation with U.S. intelligence, had planned a rescue operation, but it was called off at the last minute after concerns from the German foreign minister about the risks to Nientiet’s life.
Reports suggest that a security officer at the German Red Cross compound may have been involved in the kidnapping, though this information has yet to be confirmed.
Both the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the German government have been unable to secure her release. In her plea, Nientiet said her situation grows more perilous by the day.
By Shabelle.
