ALGIERS: An armed group that kidnapped an Algerian entrepreneur eight days ago freed him on Sunday, public radio reported, after local residents held strikes and marches to demand his release.
The 35-year-old was let go at dawn near the town of Freha in the northern region of Kabylie, which is on the Mediterranean Sea, it reported. He was kidnapped in the same area on July 3 by an unidentified group.
People of the region mobilized to demand his unconditional release, with several thousand taking part in a march on Saturday in Freha, about 110 km east of Algiers.
In April a man in his eighties abducted in Kabylie was freed after 26 days in captivity following community pressure. No ransom was paid for his release.
In October last year a trader held hostage for three days by armed Islamists was freed after protests by residents of his Kabylie town of Issennajen that extended to neighboring villages.
