The Swiss government said two Swiss tourists taken hostage by tribesmen in Yemen today had been freed and were "safe and well," even as the kidnapper claimed to be still in possession of the two.
"The Swiss couple abducted in Yemen has been freed. Both are safe and well," the Swiss Foreign Ministry in Berne said in a statement on its Web site.
The two were freed following efforts by the Swiss officials in Yemen and Saudi Arabia and by Yemeni authorities, the ministry said.
But Hassan Mohammed al-Dhaman, leader of tribesmen holding the pair, said he was still in possession of the Swiss couple and that demands that his imprisoned brother be released by Yemeni officials had not been met.
"My brother is still being held by authorities, and the tourists are still here. They are sleeping now," Dhaman said by telephone.
A Yemeni official said he had no information about the hostages being freed. A Swiss Foreign Ministry spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
Dhaman and fellow tribesmen kidnapped the two tourists to press for the release of his teenage brother, arrested for allegedly stealing a car, government and tribal sources said.
Dhaman earlier cautioned that the pair would be killed if the government tried to free them by force.