The Cuban government has issued a statement on the whereabouts of two doctors who were abducted in Mandera.
A Cuban official on Tuesday said that the doctors, Assel Herrera and Landy Rodriguez are alive and well.
The Vice president of the Cuban Council of Ministers, Ines Maria Chapman said that both the Kenyan and Cuban governments are working hand-in-hand to ensure that the doctors are set free from the abductors.
Chapman said that the doctors are somewhere in Somalia, adding that they will soon be free. He released the statement in Havana after he landed back in Cuba from Kenya.
“The Kenyan authorities affirmed that both doctors, Assel Herrera and Landy Rodriguez, are well and they will continue their efforts, as well as those carried out by our country, for their safe return to Cuba,” he said.
The Al Shabab militiamen have admitted abducting the doctors. The government official said that the kidnappers have demanded a ransom of $1.5 billion before they can release the doctors following the incident. The Cuban official asked for patience as the efforts to rescue them continue.
“Our people can be sure that the Cuban government, like the government of Kenya, is making huge efforts, paying special attention to this issue,” Chapman said.
The abduction forced the government to recall Cuban doctors from the area after they expressed fear for their lives.
