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WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said Monday that an American oil worker who was abducted in Yemen in 2017 had been reunited with his wife and children.
Danny Burch, a Texas man, was kidnapped on a busy street in Sanaa, the Yemeni capital, according to a 2017 New York Times story. Yemen has been locked in civil war since 2015.
“It is my honor today to announce that Danny Burch, a United States citizen who has been held hostage in Yemen for 18 months, has been recovered and reunited with his wife and children," Trump tweeted from Air Force One as he traveled to Vietnam for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The State Department confirmed Burch's release, saying he was freed last week. But officials declined to say when or where he was reunited with his family. "Out of respect for the family’s privacy and for their security, we will not comment on their current condition or location," a State Department spokesperson said.
The Houthi rebels, backed by Iran, controlled the area where Burch was seized, although it's not clear why he was taken or by whom. The Yemen conflict has become a proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Burch was living and working in Yemen at the time of his capture. He had married a Yemeni woman, and his wife told the Times that he disappeared "in broad daylight" after dropping their three children off at a sports club.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday that the United Arab Emirates had played a key role in securing Burch's release.
"In 2017, U.S. citizen Danny Burch was taken hostage from Sanaa, Yemen. Today he is safe and secure, and is reunited with his wife and children," Pompeo said in a statement. "The family has asked for privacy as they recover from this ordeal."
"Danny’s recovery reflects the best of what the United States & its partners can accomplish," Trump wrote in his tweet.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says U.S. citizen Danny Burch held in Yemen has returned to family
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