TOKYO (Xinhua) — Japan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday confirmed the release of Keiko Akahane, a female 32-year-old doctor abducted in Ethiopia in September, was freed on Wednesday.
“I am pleased from the bottom of my heart for the people concerned. I condemn the abduction as a dirty crime and stress anew that it cannot be justified for any reason,” said Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone in a statement released Thursday.
The ministry said Akahane sustained no injuries and is now in a facility of an aid group in Kenya.
The foreign ministry declined to comment on whether Japan paid any ransom.