Congo Military Releases 2 Kenya Airways Staffers Held for 2 Weeks over Cargo Dispute

BY EVELYNE MUSAMBI

2:28 AM EDT, May 7, 2024

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The Republic of Congo’s military has released two Kenya Airways staffers who were detained for two weeks in a cargo dispute, Kenya’s foreign ministry said Monday.

The staffers’ detention had led Kenya Airways to suspend flights to Congo, but the state-owned airline said flights would resume Wednesday.

The airline said it had rejected the cargo because it didn’t have the required documentation. The nature of the cargo, described as “valuable,” hasn’t been disclosed.

Congo’s military had arrested the staffers from the airline’s offices in the main airport in the capital, Kinshasa.

A military court granted the airline’s application for their release but the military continued to hold them.

Kenya and Congo have cordial relations, with Kenya participating in U.N-backed peacekeeping missions in Congo.

The Kenyan Embassy in Congo negotiated for the release of the staffers, Foreign Ministry Principal Secretary Korir Singoei had said.

Colleagues and embassy officials were only granted a few minutes with the two.

Singoei met the family of one of the detained staffers and assured them that their kin would be safe and “fairly treated” by the authorities in Congo.

EVELYNE MUSAMBI

Musambi is an Associated Press reporter based in Nairobi, Kenya. She covers regional security, geopolitics, trade relations and foreign policy across East Africa.