Two of four UN hostages held by gunmen loyal to clan faction leader Musa Sudi Yalahow were freed in Somalia this morning.
Mr Pierre-Paul Lamotte, a Belgian, and Algerian Frenchman Mr Mohamed Mohamedi were released in Mogadishu.
"The hostages are free to leave Mogadishu unconditionally. They are freed by our faction and we are not going to hand them over to the so-called Somali Transitional Government," Yalahow's acting faction leader Omar Muhamud Mohamed said.
AFP