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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Italian released in Philippines | Italian released in Philippines |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| An Italian Red Cross worker has been freed in the Philippines after being held hostage by Muslim rebels for nearly six months, officials say. | An Italian Red Cross worker has been freed in the Philippines after being held hostage by Muslim rebels for nearly six months, officials say. |
| Eugenio Vagni, 62, arrived at an army base on the restive southern island of Jolo with a local politician who had been mediating with the kidnappers. | Eugenio Vagni, 62, arrived at an army base on the restive southern island of Jolo with a local politician who had been mediating with the kidnappers. |
| Mr Vagni and two co-workers were seized by Abu Sayyaf rebels as they visited a project at a jail on Jolo. | Mr Vagni and two co-workers were seized by Abu Sayyaf rebels as they visited a project at a jail on Jolo. |
| The other two Red Cross staff were released in April. | The other two Red Cross staff were released in April. |
| Mr Vagni, who suffers from hypertension and a hernia, was in "relatively good health" but "very weak", said the head of the Philippine Red Cross, Richard Gordon. | |
| No ransom was paid for his release and he will be sent to Italy as soon as possible, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told Italian TV. | |
| He is currently in the care of the Italian embassy in the capital Manila, the minister added. | |
| 'No blitz' | |
| Richard Gordon also said that no ransom had been paid for the release of the sanitation engineer. | |
| "I am elated," he told Reuters news agency. | |
| "Finally, his ordeal is over." | |
| Mr Vagni's kidnapping ended peacefully, "in the best way", Foreign Minister Frattini said. | |
| "There was no blitz, no violent action that could have put the hostage's life at risk", he told Italian TV. | |
| At one point in the crisis, the Abu Sayyaf rebels had threatened to behead a hostage if their demands were not met. | |
| They had called for an end to all military operations against them on Jolo, as well as the withdrawal of troops. | |
| The two other hostages released earlier were Philippine engineer Mary Jean Lacaba and Swiss national Andreas Notter. |