(New York Post) The remains of a Swiss woman who was killed while held hostage by an Al Qaeda affiliate group in Mali have been recovered, government officials said Wednesday.
Switzerland’s Foreign Ministry announced in a statement that DNA tests confirmed the body of the hostage — identified in reports as Beatrice Stoeckli, a Christian missionary who was kidnapped by the Islamist group in 2016 — has been formally identified.
“Sadly, we now have definitive evidence that the woman who was held hostage is dead,” said Switzerland’s foreign minister, Ignazio Cassis. “But I am also relieved that we can return the woman’s remains to her family and I would like to pass on my deepest condolences to them.”