The Kenyan government is doing everything possible to guarantee the safe return of the two Cuban doctors who were kidnapped in Mandera more than a year ago, a Cuban official has said.
Cuban Minister of Public Health José Ángel Portal said on his Twitter account that he had a phone conversation with his Kenyan counterpart, CS Mutahi Kagwe, and they had a discussion on the matter.
“The Kenyan government is working hard to guarantee the safe return of Doctors Assel Herrera and Landy Rodríguez who were kidnapped by suspected members of the al Shabaab terrorist group on April 12, 2019,” he tweeted.
The two medics are part of 100 Cuban doctors who arrived in Kenya in 2018 under an agreement signed between the two countries to improve access to specialised medical services.
Herrera, a specialist in comprehensive general medicine, and Rodríguez, a specialist in surgery, were kidnapped after their car was intercepted by militants in Mandera. Their bodyguard was killed.
The driver of the vehicle was later charged with aiding the kidnapping of the doctors. Preliminary investigations indicated that he had been in touch with the group prior to the incident.
Kenya declined to pay Sh150 million demanded by al Shabaab as ransom. The government said Kenya does not negotiate ransom payments as a matter of policy.
Last month, the presidents of Cuba and Kenya discussed their efforts for the release of Cuban doctors.
“I have had a fruitful conversation with the President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta,” Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel wrote on his Twitter account.
Díaz-Canel indicated that during the dialogue with Uhuru, they discussed the state of bilateral relations, the fight against Covid-19 and the current state of efforts to achieve the safe return of the two doctors.
Edited by A.N
