Spanish photographer, José Cendón (photo, left), who was kidnapped in Somalia on November 26th along with British journalist, Colin Freeman, was liberated yesterday.

Speaking from the residence of the Spanish ambassador in Nairobi (Kenya), where he spent his first night of freedom, Cendón said that "I'm very well, both mentally and physically," adding that he was treated "pretty well" by his captors with whom "we talked quite a lot and even played chess."

Admitting that "they threatened to kill us, but we never feared for our lives," the photographer explained that he was more concerned about the effect his ordeal may have been having on his family.

Cendón said that he did not know whether a ransom had been paid, and that he was not allowed to speak about other issues such as whether the translators or bodyguards who had been accompanying them had been responsible for the kidnapping.

Somali police arrest two in search for kidnapped journalists
By: thinkSPAIN
Saturday, November 29, 2008

Puntlandia police commissioner, Farah Isa, has confirmed that two people allegedly involved in the kidnappings of a British journalist and Spanish photographer, José Cendón, have been arrested. Police checkpoints have been set up on all the main routes in and out of Bossaso in an effort to find eye-witnesses to the incident.

For his part, the president of the Puntlandia government, Mohamud Musa Hirsi, is insisting that no ransom money will be paid while Bossaso police chief, Gani Mohamed Abdi, said that the the journalists are being held in the Sanaag mountains some 20km southeast to the city, and that he has officers in the area.

Further encouraging news came from local tribal leader, Abdulkader Ali, who revealed that negotiations are under way between tribal elders and the kidnappers to secure the hostages' safe release.

Spanish and British journalists kidnapped in Somalia
By: thinkSPAIN
Thursday, November 27, 2008

Miguel Ángel Moratinos has indicated that negotiations are under way with his counterparts in the British government to agree a coordinated diplomatic approach to liberate a British journalist and Spanish photographer, José Cendón, who, along with two local translators, have been kidnapped in Puntlandia in northeast Somalia.

It appears that the two men had just completed a report on Somali piracy for a well-known English newspaper, were on their way to the airport, and were no longer under the protection of the regional security forces who had provided them with an armed escort during the rest of their stay.

José Cendón (34), who was born in Venezuela but brought up in Santiago de Compostela, studied Economics, Journalism and Cinema in Madrid, and has more than ten years' experience working in some of the world's most dangerous war zones.

A regular contributor to Agence France Press, Cendón won both the World Press Photo and Pictures of the Year awards in 2007 for a report about psychiatric care in Burundi.

A Canadian journalist and an Australian photographer kidnapped in Somalia last August remain in captivity.

Spanish doctor, Mercedes García and Argentinian nurse, Pilar Bouza, who were kidnapped from the same area in 2007, were eventually liberated after the payment of a €155,000 euro ransom.