The Egyptian foreign ministry claimed that six Egyptian Coptic Christians who had been abducted in western Libya have been released.
“According to information received from our embassy in Tripoli, the six Egyptians detained in Libya have been released,” ministry spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid said on Twitter.
The ministry had said earlier that it was “working around the clock” for the release of the six Egyptians.
It added that they had been “detained in an illegal immigration centre in western Libya” after travelling “with work permits stipulating their presence only in the east of Libya”.
Lawmaker Mostafa Bakry tweeted Thursday that the six Copts had been abducted “about a week ago” and were being held for ransom by “criminal gangs”.
Bakry said the six had been looking “for work opportunities in construction” when they were kidnapped.
Media outlets close to the Coptic Orthodox Church said the men had been abducted while travelling between Benghazi and Tripoli.
They said the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of $30,000 for each of the six men.
Egypt’s foreign ministry said it had met with the families of the abducted more than once as part of its efforts to gain their release.