国际英语新闻:Kidnapped German freed in Yemen: official

SANAA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- A German national who was kidnapped earlier this year by Yemeni gunmen in the capital Sanaa was released on Tuesday, a Yemeni interior official told Xinhua.

The German was kidnapped in February and then moved as a hostage to the neighboring northeastern province of Marib.

The release was mediated by the governor of the neighboring province of al-Jouf and some tribal leaders, in return for a ransom and the release of the kidnappers' relatives from the Yemeni government jail, the official said on condition of anonymity.

The freed German is on his way to Sanaa where he will be handed over to the German embassy, the official added.

Foreigners are frequently kidnapped in Yemen by al-Qaida militants or tribesmen who demand for ransoms or the release of their jailed fellows. Most of the hostages have been freed unharmed.

Over the past two months, six foreigners have been kidnapped in Sanaa, including two British nationals.

The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is still holding an Iranian diplomat who was kidnapped last July and a Saudi diplomat in May 2012.