A Dutch aid worker freed Sunday after almost two years of captivity near war-torn Chechnya hailed the end to his "nightmare" amid lingering accusations of official collusion in his abduction.
Arjan Erkel, who had reportedly been threatened with execution during his 20-month ordeal in the Russian republic of Dagestan neighbouring Chechnya, did not speak about who was responsible for kidnapping him.
"I feel fantastic. I thank the Lord that he has brought me back to life," Erkel, looking pale and thin after his ordeal, told reporters outside the Dutch embassy in Moscow. "Inshallah (If God is Willing), tonight I will be home."