Australian Grandmother Freed By Al Qaeda

An Australian woman kidnapped with her husband by al Qaeda fighters in Burkina Faso has been freed.

Jocelyn and Ken Elliott, both in their 80s, were abducted in the north of the West African country, near the border with Mali, last month.

Mrs Elliott stood with Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou at a news conference in Dosso, southwestern Niger, as officials said they were intensifying efforts to secure the release of her surgeon husband.

On Friday, al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) said they had kidnapped the couple and would release Mrs Elliott due to public pressure and guidance from its leaders "not to involve women in war".

The circumstances of her release and how she arrived in Niger were not immediately clear.

Friends said the couple dedicated their lives to improving medical services in the country.

For over 40 years, they ran a 120-bed clinic in the northern town of Djibo, where Dr Elliott was the only surgeon and was supported by local staff.

They were abducted from the town on 15 January - the same day al Qaeda fighters raided a restaurant and hotel in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou, killing 30 people.

Six Canadians, two French people, two Swiss nationals and an American were among those killed.

The Elliotts, originally from Perth in Western Australia, have two sons, a daughter and three grandchildren.