Gift of the Givers says it made a last-ditch effort to secure the release South African hostage Jericho van Deventer It has been more than a month since his captors confirmed that they are considering the final decision on his release.
Van Deventer, a medic, was captured in Libya by an al-Qaeda splinter group before being “sold” to kidnappers in Mali.
He is the father of three children and Combat Medic with advanced life support skills training. He has more than two decades of experience, including 11 years in the military as a medical practitioner.
He was in Libya as part of a month-long contract as a paramedic.
From 2020 to 2022, the family heard almost nothing about his whereabouts.
He is the only one known South African hostage held anywhere in the world.
Dr. Imtiaz Suleiman of Humanitarian Relief confirmed on Sunday his negotiator Mohamed Yahia Dicko had recently returned from Mali after “engaging everyone possible” to secure Van Deventer’s release.
Yahya met with the main mediator, several other mediators, sheikhs, tribal leaders, and influential people to persuade JNIM (Al Qaeda) to consider releasing a ransom without any source of offering a ransom.