Four people abducted and detained in Mali, including 75-year-old French charity worker Sophie Pétronin and ex-Malian opposition leader Soumaïla Cissé, have been released.

Ms Pétronin, who was seized in December 2016, was the last French citizen to be held hostage anywhere in the world.

Two Italian nationals were also freed, the Malian government said.

The release was part of a prisoner swap for more than 100 jihadists, believed to be affiliated to al-Qaeda.

The Malian presidency has not revealed how it was able to free the hostages.

Malian and international armed forces have been struggling to contain a jihadist insurgency in the north of country that first emerged in 2012.

Source:BBC