Two Kenyan pilots abducted by a South Sudan rebel group have been released after the government and the rebels agreed on an amount of money to be paid as compensation for the duo to be released. The excited pilots arrived at the Wilson airport in Nairobi on Tuesday afternoon and were received by members of their families and friends.
Captain Frank Njoroge and co-pilot Kennedy Shamalla were abducted by Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO) after their plane crashed in Upper Nile in Akobo in South Sudan, over a month ago and eventually killed one person and destroyed property.
The plane crashed at the region that has its allegiance to former South Sudan vice-president Riek Machar. The two pilots were flying a Kenyan –owned Cessna Caravan 5Y FDC plane that had been hired by a Juba-based NGO to ferry its staff to the Upper Nile State before the crash happened.
At the time of the crash on 7 January, the plane had nine passengers all of whom escaped unhurt. There have also been fears that the captives were not receiving treatment for the injuries they suffered in the crash.
According to the reports, the rebel group had demanded for an initial compensation of 20 million shillings ($200,000), but following intense negotiations, they agreed to a sum of 11 million shillings ($107,743).
A rebel spokesman said the Kenyans were freed after an insurance company paid more than $100,000 (£71,620) in compensation for the death of a civilian killed when their plane hit the ground.
The oil-rich nation has been in the throes of civil war since 2013 just months after President Salva Kiir fired his then deputy Riek Machar.
A rebel spokesman insists the payment was not a ransom, but compensation for the deaths.
