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| Africa Horn |
| German Aid Worker Kidnapped in Somalia Seven Years Ago Pleads for Release |
| 2025-03-29 |
| MOGADISHU (SMN) — Sonja Nientiet, …so forgotten, poor thing, that she does not appear in Rantburg’s extensive archives… 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. Her abduction [was] by suspected Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia, Kidnapped in 2018 while working for the International Commission of the Red Cross (ICRC), Sonja Nientiet has appealed for freedom without giving much detail about her captivity by the militants. In the video, the nurse appears wearing a hijab and looking frail …before and after photos can be seen at the link… — she asked the German government to pursue her release while informing the audience that her health was deteriorating at a faster rate thus the call for intervention by the German government.“ I was captured on the 2nd of May 2018 while I was working for the ICRC in Mogadishu, so now I have almost spent 7 years in captivity in Somalia,” the visibly traumatized nurse said. “My health is deteriorating day by day and I am deeply concerned for my safety and for my well-being, so I am addressing this message to the German government, to my fellow citizens, and my loved ones back home because this is what keeps me going,” she adds in the five-minute video. The video remains undated and its authenticity could not be proved but it was posted on March 26th, 2025. She was kidnapped in 2018 at the ICRC compound in Mogadishu seven years ago. According to sources then, the nurse was strolling on the compound when she was picked up by an ICRC security guard later identified by authorities as Mohamud Mohamed Alas, and was whisked away. It is believed that she was taken away by Al-Shabaab militants. The al-Shabaab, who are under intense pressure from a collective operation by security agencies, usually kidnap foreign nationals and use them to bargain for ransom. They have repeatedly released videos of people in captivity. Within the last two years, the militants have released two videos of suspected Kenyan soldiers who are in their custody, but the governments of Kenya and Somalia have yet to comment on the issue. Governments usually do not pay ransom for the release of their nationals – a strategy meant to embrace 'zero negotiations' with terror groups. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #4 Wow seven years. The Germans really take care of their own |
| Posted by: Regular joe 2025-03-29 16:12 |
| #3 The Garowe link has before and after photos, NN2N1. It’s highlighted in the article now, so you can find it — apologies for the error. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2025-03-29 12:30 |
| #2 After 7 years of living hell, I wonder what she looks like now? These SAVE AFRICA groupies need to understand, it's a tribal 3rd world. Sad as it is to say, it quickly bites the hands that come to help it. |
| Posted by: NN2N1 2025-03-29 06:27 |
| #1 Should've stayed home. |
| Posted by: Grom the Affective 2025-03-29 04:26 |