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Dutch ex-hostage heads home after rescue in Mali

Released Dutch hostage Sjaak Rijke smiles after arriving by airplane in Bamako, Mali, Tuesday, April 7, 2015. French special forces on Monday freed a Dutchman held hostage since being kidnapped in 2011 by extremists in Mali, the government said. There was no word on the fate of two men abducted at the same time. (AP Photo/Harouna Traore)
Released Dutch hostage Sjaak Rijke smiles after arriving by airplane in Bamako, Mali, Tuesday, April 7, 2015. French special forces on Monday freed a Dutchman held hostage since being kidnapped in 2011 by extremists in Mali, the government said. There was no word on the fate of two men abducted at the same time. (AP Photo/Harouna Traore)

By Associated Press 2 min read

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) – A Dutch national who was held in captivity by Islamic militants for more than three years has left Mali and is headed back home, officials said Tuesday.

Sjaak Rijke, who was abducted from a hotel in northern Mali in November 2011, flew into Mali’s capital Bamako on Tuesday.

He stepped out of the plane – appearing sunburned and with a lengthy gray beard – and then met with Dutch and Malian dignitaries before leaving.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry said in a statement Tuesday that Rijke had been reunited with his partner, Tilly. The couple would now “retreat to a location where they can recover together,” it said.

The French military has said that Rijke’s rescue took place at 5 a.m. Monday in far northern Mali, though there has been no word on the whereabouts of two other men who were kidnapped alongside Rijke.