US / kidnapping Captors Free Americans Abducted in Yemen Crackdown on kidnappers' relatives leads to quick release By Marie Morris, Newser Staff 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. (More kidnapping stories.) Report an error