US | kidnapping Captors Free Americans Abducted in Yemen Crackdown on kidnappers' relatives leads to quick release By Marie Morris Posted May 25, 2010 1:17 PM CDT Copied In this Jan. 7, 2010, file photo, Yemeni soldiers operate a checkpoint in the streets of San'a, Yemen, where two Americans were kidnapped yesterday. They have been freed, the Yemeni government says. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser, File) The two Americans kidnapped yesterday near Sanaa, Yemen, have been freed, the Yemeni government tells Reuters. The captors were demanding the release of a jailed relative, but the government arrested numerous other family members to pressure the kidnappers to free the tourists, who are husband and wife. The government did agree to investigate the original demand. Read These Next North Carolina shooting suspect once walked the red carpet. The gunman who killed 4 at a Michigan church was an ex-marine. 'We heard a big bang,' says churchgoer in Michigan Skydivers leap from plane 2 minutes before fatal crash. Report an error