All 25 Chinese workers kidnapped in Sinai freed

BEIJING // The 25 Chinese workers kidnapped by in Sinai by Egyptian Bedouins were released yesterday, a Chinese ambassador said.

The incident comes days after 29 Chinese nationals in Sudan were captured by rebels who attacked their camp in the volatile South Kordofan state, where they were involved in a road-building project. They have still not been released.

"I can confirm that all 25 people have been released. Right now they are being taken care of by the Egyptian government and are staying in army accommodation," the assistant to the Chinese ambassador to Egypt said.

"They are all well, with no injuries. There was no need to send them to hospital," the Cairo-based assistant, who would not give his name, said over the phone. He refused to give details of how the workers were released.

The Chinese nationals, technicians and engineers who work for a military-owned cement factory in central Sinai, were abducted on Tuesday on their way to work, an Egyptian security official said.

The kidnappers who seized them were demanding the release of five Bedouins held in connection with an attack on the tourist resort of Taba in 2004, part of a series of bombings claimed by an Islamist group.

They said the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, which took power last year after an uprising forced Hosni Mubarak to resign as president, had repeatedly promised to release the Bedouins.

The official Xinhua news agency said the workers had been freed by their abductors, but gave no further details of any negotiations.

"We had expected the problem to be solved in one or two days, but it was settled so quickly," a worker, Pan, 25 told Xinhua, adding the embassy had managed to keep in touch with them through text messages.

China's foreign ministry yesterday warned Chinese companies and personnel working abroad to be on their guard after a similar incident in Sudan.

We "remind Chinese personnel and firms abroad to improve their risk awareness and strengthen security", the ministry said.

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The 29 workers in Sudan were captured on Saturday. They have been described as hostages by the Sudanese military but rebels say they were only collateral victims of fighting with government troops.

China dispatched a team to Sudan this week to help secure their release, and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North holding the workers said it was ready to talk with the delegation.