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ROME (Reuters) – Silvia Romano, an Italian aid worker kidnapped 18 months ago in East Africa, landed in Rome on Sunday the day after she was released.
Gunmen captured Romano, who was working for an Italian charity called Africa Milele, in south-eastern Kenya in November 2018. No group claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.
It was found in Somalia, some 30 km (19 miles) outside the capital Mogadishu, and was released thanks to the efforts of the external intelligence agency, Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said.
Romano, 24, landed at Rome’s Ciampino airport aboard a special flight around 2 p.m. (1200 GMT).
Escorted by masked men from the intelligence service, she temporarily removed her protective mask to greet as she descended the steps of the plane before hugging family members waiting for her at the airport.
It was received by Di Maio and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.
In their native Milan neighborhood, church bells greeted their arrival, with many people on their balconies, SKY TG24 showed.
Romano is expected to meet with prosecutors in Rome later on Sunday.
“I was strong and I resisted,” Romano said according to Italian newspapers after his release.
Conte said the workforce working to free Romano had been in the final stages “for the past few months,” after having evidence that he was still alive. He added that the details were not disclosed so as not to compromise the operation.
“We are very happy to welcome Silvia at such a delicate moment for the country. The state is always there and will always be there,” said Conte.
He thanked the intelligence services, the judiciary, and the ministries of defense and foreign affairs, all involved in the liberation of women.
Later Sunday, Turkish security sources said Romano was rescued after a joint effort by Turkey’s MIT intelligence agency and Italian and Somali government authorities.
“MIT began working in the region to determine Silvia Romano’s condition in December 2019 at the request of Italian authorities,” the sources said.
They added that Romano was handed over to Italian authorities in Somalia on Saturday after joint efforts.
“I am literally filled with joy right now. But it is hard to even think, please let me breathe. I need to resist the shock, the happiness is so great that it is exploding,” said Silvia’s father, Enzo. said by several Italian newspapers on Sunday.
(Reporting by Giulia Segreti; Additional reporting by Orhan Coskun in Ankara; Editing by Alex Richardson and Peter Cooney)
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