Kidnapped Canadian nationals rescued

The two Canadian girls who were kidnapped by some unknown gang in Ghana have been rescued, a government statement announced.

Police sources say the two were rescued at Sawaba, a community in the Kwabre East district.

“National Security Operatives in the early hours of Wednesday 12 June, 2019 completed an operation which successfully rescued the two (2) Canadian women recently abducted in the Ashanti Region,” a statement from Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said.

“Government continues to encourage the media and commentators to be circumspect in public commentary on security matters in order not to compromise other related operations. Citizens and travellers are once again assured that Ghana remains safe,” the statement added.

The two are currently at the CID regional office at the Ashanti Regional Police HQ.

Background

The Canadians, charity volunteers aged 19 and 20, were abducted last Tuesday, 4 June, in Kumasi, Ghana’s second-largest city, some 200 kilometres (125 miles) northwest of the capital Accra.

Rare case

Kidnappings and violent crime against foreigners are rare in Ghana.

But earlier this year, local media quoted President Nana Akufo-Addo as warning that action must be taken to make sure kidnapping “doesn’t become a feature of our society.”

In April, an Indian man was reportedly abducted, also in Kumasi, by an armed gang demanding a cash ransom. He was swiftly rescued by police.

Tourism is an important industry for Ghana, and Kumasi, the historic capital of the Ashanti kingdom, is favourite stop.

Ghana is a country of some 30 million people, where more than two-thirds of people follow Christianity and the rest Islam and other religions.

It has long been seen as a bulwark of stability in a region struggling to contain multiple groups of extremist fighters.

Akufo-Addo, speaking on Wednesday to mark the Muslim holiday of Eid al Fitr, called on the Ghanaian people to protect religious tolerance.

“We are the envy of the world when it comes to the peaceful co-existence of different religious communities,” Akufo-Addo said in a prepared speech released by the presidency.

He also urged people to “report suspicious characters” to the police.

“We cannot surrender this beautiful way of life for anything, and, certainly, not to people who seek to pervert religious beliefs,” Akufo-Addo added.

Source: Daily Mail GH