SANAA, Jan. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- The German family who were released on Saturday after being held hostage for three days by Yemeni tribesmen boarded a charted plane on Sunday to go home to Germany's Cologne.

    Former German deputy former minister Juergen Chrobog, his wife and three children were kidnapped on Wednesday by armed tribal groups during their travel in Yemen and released safe on Dec. 31 after the Yemeni government negotiated a settlement with the abductors.

    Prior to their departure on Sunday, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh held a pledged a 15-minute meeting with the Chrobogs, vowing to halt abductions in Yemen.

    "We will eliminate kidnappings as we eradicated terror," said the president.

    Juergen Chrobog, 65, was also former German ambassador to the United States.

    Armed tribesmen in Yemen often abduct foreign tourists to pressure the government to release their jailed members. The hostages were usually freed unharmed after negotiation between the authorities and the kidnappers.

    Yemen's tribesmen seized two Austrians on Dec. 21 and released them three days later.

    In last November, two Swiss tourists were kidnapped but were soon released after the government met the tribesmen's demands. Enditem