Israeli-Ethiopian citizen Francis Adbabayi, who was kidnapped in the environs of the Ethiopian city of Gondar in the Amhara region three weeks ago, was released on Monday and is expected to return to Israel on Tuesday. Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed to Al-Monitor that the embassy had received information from the local police commander that Adbabayi had been freed.
According to a report in the Israeli news outlet Mako, 79-year-old Adbabayi was rescued by Ethiopian special forces after a chase and shootout with the kidnappers. After being rescued, he was brought back to Gondar, where he met with two of his children who had traveled from Israel to Ethiopia in an effort to find their father.
Many details of this incident remain unclear. Shortly after the kidnapping, the family received a ransom demand in the form of a picture of Adbabayi handcuffed and an audio message from their father saying "Help me. I'm in the middle of the jungle. It's pouring rain. I should have come on Sunday and I'll probably stay here. Such a fate should not even be bestowed on one’s enemies." The Israeli Foreign Ministry said at the time it was aware of the affair and was handling it via its consular department in Israel and the Israeli consulate in Addis Ababa.
According to a Walla report shortly after the incident, Israeli authorities suspected that the kidnapping and ransom request were staged, and so the embassy had stopped handling the case. The Israeli Foreign Ministry never confirmed that, stating it continues handling the case vis-a-vis local authorities.
