Foreign Ministry confirms S. Korean woman freed after kidnapping in Burkina Faso

SEOUL, May 11 (Yonhap) -- The Seoul government confirmed Saturday that a South Korean woman was freed by an overnight French military rescue operation in Burkina Faso.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the South Korean national, who is in her 40s, was one of the four hostages who were kidnapped in the Sahel region of the African country.

"We've made contact with her family here and notified them of her health conditions," the ministry said.

They were rescued in the military operation by French special forces, in which two French soldiers died, on Friday.

After the mission, the Paris government announced that its forces freed a South Korean citizen, a U.S. woman and two French tourists in northern Burkina Faso. But the Seoul government had not confirmed the fact that a South Korean tourist was missing in Africa.

"The South Korean Embassy in France will provide its utmost support to the woman when she arrives in Paris," the ministry said.

"We mourn the loss of the French soldiers and offer our condolences to their families. And we also appreciate the French government for rescuing the South Korean national," it added.

brk@yna.co.kr
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