Stockholm, June 26 : Johan Gustafsson, a 42-year-old Swede man kidnapped by an Al Qaeda linked group in Mali since 2011, has been released, the Swedish Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
"It is with great pleasure that I can announce that Johan Gustafsson has been released and can return to Sweden," Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom said in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.
"Johan's situation has touched many of us, and extensive efforts have been made to secure his release," she said.
It was during a motorcycle vacation through Africa when Gustafsson was kidnapped in the city of Timbuktu by the terrorist group. Since then, he has been a prisoner of the group.
