Freed Italian hostage flies home

The 32-year-old, who works for aid group Care international, left Kabul on a private jet accompanied by her mother, father and brother hours after officials announced that her ordeal was finally over.

Afghan authorities insisted no ransom was paid but Italian newspapers reported that they had released the jailed mother of Cantoni's abductor, the alleged head of a criminal gang, in exchange.

Cantoni was snatched from her car at gunpoint in the centre of the Afghan capital on May 16, in an incident that spread fear among the Afghan and foreign communities in Kabul.

A Falcon 900 jet plane carrying Cantoni took off for Rome at 12:45 pm (0815 GMT) from Kabul military airport, Kabul civilian airport director Mohammad Qasim Jarar told AFP.

Cantoni's mother Germana, who appeared on Afghan television this week to beg for her release, her father Fabio and one of her brothers flew over from Italy to be with her as soon as they knew she was free, officials said.

"Her mother, father and brother had come to Kabul to take her back home," a source at the airport said.

Dark-haired and bespectacled Cantoni, last seen publicly with two guns pointed at her head in a video released by the kidnappers, appeared frail but in good health.

"They treated me well. I was being watched by a group of women," Cantoni was quoted as saying upon her release by Italy's La Repubblica daily.

Her main hostage-taker, identified as Timur Shah, reportedly demanded the release of his mother, held prisoner on charges that she had helped her son in a previous kidnapping, La Repubblica and Corriere della Sera reported.

The Italian government had to convince reluctant Afghan authorities to release the woman, La Repubblica said. She was finally freed Wednesday, clinching the deal with the kidnappers, the reports said.

A local businessman then brought Shah's mother to an apartment in the Afghan capital and Cantoni was handed over in exchange, Corriere reported.