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Arab TV airs video of Frenchman kidnapped in Mali in 2011

Published: 03 Jun 2014 - 06:33 pm | Last Updated: 01 Feb 2022 - 10:15 am

DUBAI: Frenchman Serge Lazarevic, kidnapped in Mali by Al-Qaeda in 2011, appeared in a video aired on Tuesday by Dubai-based Alaan television urging French President Francois Hollande to act to secure his release.

Lazarevic, wearing a black turban, sporting a long beard and flanked by armed men, said the video was being recorded on May 13.

He is the last French hostage worldwide still being held.

The 50-year-old man was kidnapped by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) on November 24, 2011, along with Philippe Verdon who was found shot dead in July last year.

He was accompanying Verdon on a business trip when they were seized by a group of armed men at a small hotel in Hombori, in the north, according to his relatives.

AQIM was behind the killing of two French journalists in November. (AFP)