The seven Chinese workers abducted by rebels in Ethiopia after a deadly raid on a Chinese-run oil facility on April 24 arrived in Beijing yesterday afternoon.
Seventy-four people, including nine Chinese nationals, were killed in the pre-dawn raid.
Officials of the foreign and commerce ministries and Sinopec greeted the workers on their arrival.
The workers were sent to Ethiopia by Henan-based Zhongyuan Petroleum Exploration Bureau, a subsidiary of China's biggest refiner and petrochemicals maker Sinopec.
The overwhelming feeling among the workers was relief. "I want to thank our motherland for everything. It is so good to be alive," one of them said.
"My wife and child are waiting for me I want to see them as soon as possible," said the worker, requesting not to be named.
All of the returnees are in stable health despite the obvious fatigue as a result of their six-day abduction ordeal.
The Chinese workers "are generally in good condition except that they are suffering from diarrhea," a Sinopec official surnamed Yang said. "They will be able to return home after thorough check-ups and a period of recuperation."
(China Daily May 3, 2007)