(22 Sep 2008)
1. Various of freed German hostage, known by his Somali name as Abu Baker Abbas (German name to be confirmed) walking into the offices of the Vice President of the Semi-Autonomous Somali Region of Puntland
2. Freed German hostage and his Somali wife (name to be confirmed) sitting down
3. Close up of freed German hostage
4. SOUNDBITE: (Somali) Hassan Dahir Mahmud, Vice President the Semi-Autonomous Somali Region of Puntland:
"We are very pleased with the release of the hostages from the kidnappers by the Puntland Police authorities, and it is my pleasure to welcome them back to freedom."
5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Freed German Hostage, known by his Somali name as Abu Baker Abbas (German name to be confirmed)
"And I want to say thank you to all the people that were working for us together, like government, military, whatever. I didn't know about the whole system which they work in Puntland and Somalia, I didn't know about all whole political system. I am a Muslim and I am married with a Somali woman, and I feel like a Somali, that's why I am here."
6. Wide pan of news conference
7. Various of freed hostage shaking hands, leaving news conference
STORYLINE:
Somali forces on Monday opened fire on kidnappers to free a German man and his Somali wife who spent two days in captivity in northern Somalia, according to Muse Gelle Yusuf, the governor of the port of Bosasso.
The couple, who were released unharmed, later gave a press conference with Hassan Dahir Mahmud, vice president the semi-autonomous Somali region of Puntland.
"We are very pleased with the release of the hostages from the kidnappers by the Puntland Police authorities, and it is my pleasure to welcome them back to freedom," Hassan Dahir Mahmud told reporters.
The freed German hostage, known by his Somali name as Abu Baker Abbas, also spoke to reporters and thanked those responsible for his release.
"And I want to say thank you to all the people that were working for us together, like government, military, whatever. I didn't know about the whole system which they work in Puntland and Somalia, I didn't know about all whole political system. I am a Muslim and I am married with a Somali woman, and I feel like a Somali, that's why I am here."
Foreigners, journalists and humanitarian workers are frequently abducted for ransoms in Somalia.
Somalia has not had an effective central government since 1991, leaving the country in the grip of violence and anarchy.
Islamic militants have been battling Somalia's fragile government and its Ethiopian allies since December 2006,
when Ethiopian troops ousted the Islamists from the capital and much of southern Somalia, which they had controlled for
six months.
Thousands of civilians have died in the fighting and hundreds of thousands more have fled the capital, Mogadishu.
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