[WATCH] Abducted Maltese hospital manager freed in Tripoli

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Pierre Baldacchino, a Maltese citizen who was abducted in Libya last week, has reportedly been freed. The Libya Herald reported that Baldacchino – the manager of the St James Hospital in Tripoli – was safely freed by the Rada militia group on the outskirts of the Libyan capital.

Baldacchino, 36, was abducted by last week by unknown kidnappers who had reportedly demanded €5 million in ransom for his release.

Special forces raided a den in Ain Zara at around 1:30am.

We thank #Libya auth for following Baldacchino case wt our security services+freeing him last night. Advice remains against travel to Libya.

— Joseph Muscat (@JosephMuscat_JM) December 22, 2015

In a video posted online shows Baldacchino, 36, standing in between two masked Rada militiamen, thanking them for their rescue operation from his unknown kidnappers.

“I was kidnapped a week ago on the highway, brought to this place, and blindfolded for the whole time until Rada thankfully came and saved me,” Baldaccino says. “It was a very bad week, I was thinking a lot of things including about not seeing my kids. Everything is OK now though.”

He then proceeds to show the camera his clearly bruised wrists and explains that “they tied me up for the whole time with ropes and handcuffs”.

In a tweet, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat thanked the Libyan authorities for working hand in hand with the Maltese security services to free Baldacchino on Monday night, and warned citzens against travelling to the North African country. 

St James Hospital International said that their manager will now be debriefed in Tripoli by the Libyan security services and will possibly return to Malta over the coming days.

“We can confirm that Pierre Baldacchino was rescued by the Libyan security forces in a delicate and sensitive operation that was successful,” the hospital said in a press statement. “Pierre is in good health, and spoke by phone to his wife and the Maltese security services.

“We would like to express our gratitude for the hard work, dedication and relentless efforts of the Libyan and Maltese security services. We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude for the sterling work, help and intervention of the Maltese government.

The hospital added that it is not in a position to provide further details or comments about the case given that details of the operation are still emerging. 

Baldacchino was abducted by last week by unknown kidnappers as he was returning home. A €5 million ransom had reportedly been demanded for his release. 

He is the second Maltese person to have been abducted in Libya in recent months, after Noel Sciberras, the director of a company that administers car parks, was abducted by a gang in Tajoura who had also demanded €5 million in ransom for his release.

Sciberras was also rescued by the Rada “Deterrent” Force, a powerful Tripoli-based militia group run by hardline Islamist Abdul Raouf Kara. The group, associated with the government in Tripoli, controls the Mitiga airport – the only operational airport in the city – and the airport prison.

The militia specialize in arresting criminals who deal in alcohol and drugs but have been accused of having an extremist Islamist agenda.