Cuba and Somalia deny reports Al-Shabaab released doctors abducted in Kenya

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Families of two doctors abducted by suspected Al-Shabaab militants in Mandera, Kenya, will have to wait a little bit longer before they know the fate of the two medics, it has emerged, after both Havana and Mogadishu denied knowledge of the development that was reported on Wednesday.

The Associated Press quoted a senior Somalia intelligence official who hinted at the release of the two doctors, in reports which were buoyed by a tweet from Cuba Minister for Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodriguez, who appeared to confirm that indeed, the doctors had been released.

But in a statement re-shared by the Director of Criminal Investigations, the general director of Press and Communications of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba, Juan Antonio Fernández Palacios revealed that efforts to rescue the two doctors were still ongoing.

"I deny the information circulated at dawn today on the alleged release of the two kidnapped Cuban doctors, Assel Herrera Correa and Landy Rodríguez Hernández," he noted. "Huge efforts continue to be made to ensure the liberation and safe return to the Homeland."

It's not clear, however, why Rodriguez's message would still remain intact on the fate of the two medics, despite his staff in the Foreign Affairs department refuting claims of their release. Assel Herrera Correa and Landy Rodríguez Hernández were kidnapped in April 2019 in Mandera town before being taken to Somalia by the militants.

The latest statement by Cuba was also backed by Somalia's Foreign Affairs Minister Ahmed Isse Awad who told Voice of America that the reports were "fabrications" in an interview on Wednesday. However, the minister said that "we are working hard to ensure they are released".

AP had quoted a senior intelligence official who claimed that the government of Cuba had requested assistance from the National Intelligence Security Agency [NISA] for the release of the two from their Al-Shabaab kidnappers, adding that they had been rescued after days of negotiations last weekend.

Bruno Rodriguez appeared to confirm the development on his Twitter, adding that the communist island will work hard to improve the relationship between Havana and Mogadishu in several areas of cooperation, saying that Cuba was keen to cement the bilateral ties with the Horn of Africa nation.

“I had a telephone conversation with the Somalian Foreign Minister Mr. Ahmed Isse Awad. I appreciated the support and efforts of his government to guarantee the safe return of our kidnapped doctors,” Rodriguez had said in a tweet, which still hasn't been withdrawn or retracted.

Traditionally, it's hard to prove or ascertain reports from communist governments that work in highly sophisticated secrecy on matters of security. It's not clear if Cuba is trying to hide the development from members of the public over the news.

The Kenya Defense Forces [KDF] elites troops from the Ranger Squad and Special Forces have been also tracing the doctors. Intelligence reports indicated that they were being held near El-Adde in the Gedo region and that elders from Kenya and Somalia had their efforts to negotiate for their release fail.

Contrary to claims that the Al-Shabaab might have abducted them for financial gains in form of ransom, conspiracy theorists claim that the two doctors could be treating ailing Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Omar Diriye, who is reported to have handed duties to his assistant.

GAROWE ONLINE