DAR ES SALAAM, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian authorities on Thursday appealed for the release of eight drivers kidnapped on Wednesday by rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The rebels known as Mai Mai on Wednesday burnt to ashes eight trucks from Tanzania and four others from Kenya, and kidnapped all drivers demanding a ransom of 4,000 U.S. dollars from each driver.
Reports said the armed rebels kidnapped the drivers at Namoya in Kivu province in the DRC.
Mindi Kasiga, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the governments of Tanzania and DRC were doing all they could to ensure that the drivers were released alive and returned to Tanzania.
She said reports from DRC indicated that the hostages were being held in a forest where they were being threatened to be killed if the money was not released within 24 hours.
She said two of the kidnapped drivers managed to escape and they were helping the Tanzanian government to get all details of the kidnap.
She also urged Tanzanians to study the situation of countries that they intended to travel to for businesses to avoid finding themselves in difficult situations like what has happened in the DRC.
Mai Mai rebels are armed forces based in North Kivu and South Kivu bordering Rwanda. They are led by warlords and supported by traditional tribal elders and village leaders.
Last year, eight Tanzanian Muslim clerics were kidnapped in the DRC and were later rescued following joint efforts by the governments of Tanzania and DRC.
