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By Jamal Adel.
Tripoli, 23 December 2013:
Kufra Military Council head, Suleiman Hammed Alzwai, announced Sunday night on the Libya Alahrar TV channel . . .[restrict]that a number of Sudanese shepherds and the five soldiers who were kidnapped in Alowianat checkpoint at the Libyan-Sudanese frontier, have now been freed by kidnappers.
Alzwai said that the kidnappers had agreed to free the shepherds and soldiers in exchange for two detained smugglers. Alzwai added that a committee of elders and tribal figures managed to contact the kidnappers and convince them of the exchange.
A number of kidnapping incidents, although not well publicised in the rest of Libya, have been recorded at the Alowianat checkpoint, which lies some 350 kms south of Kufra.
The Alowianat checkpoint is considered a key-location for the illegal trafficking trade and its importance is reflected in the on-going battle by the various interested parties, including the official Libyan authorities and tribal groups, in attempting to control it.
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