Kevin Rideout to return to US after Niger kidnapping

American missionary Kevin Rideout is preparing to return to the United States after being released from captivity in Niger and reunited with his wife, President Donald Trump said Sunday.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that Rideout had been reunited with his wife, Krista, and said he expected to host the couple at the White House soon.

SIM International, the evangelical Christian missionary group Rideout worked for, has said he was kidnapped outside his home in Niamey, Niger's capital, last October. When his release was announced Friday, the group said Rideout was in good health and in the care of US officials.

It remains unclear which group held Rideout or where he was held. The New York Times, which first reported his release, said the 50-year-old American had worked as a missionary in Niger for 19 years and was a pilot for SIM International.

Niger has been governed by a military junta for three years and has faced jihadist violence and kidnappings of Westerners. After Rideout's abduction, the US State Department issued its highest-level travel advisory for Niger, citing crime, unrest, terrorism, health risks and kidnapping.