Chinese oil workers freed in Ethiopia

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, April 29 (UPI) -- Seven Chinese oil workers who were kidnapped by rebels in Ethiopia have been freed and handed over to the Red Cross.

Red Cross officials and rebels confirmed to the BBC that one Somali and an Ethiopian oil worker have also been released. A spokesman for the Ogaden National Liberation Front added that all were in good health.

The workers had reportedly been kidnapped during a rebel attack on a Chinese oil installation in the eastern part of Ethiopia. Nine Chinese and 65 Ethiopians died during the attack.

China has strongly condemned the rebel attack, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi denounced the attack as "cold-blooded murder," the BBC reported.