Profiles: Freed UN workers

The three United Nations workers freed after being kidnapped in Kabul last month come from widely varying backgrounds but had a common purpose in their work in Afghanistan.

ANNETTA FLANIGAN

Annetta Flanigan, 43, is from Richhill in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.

A graduate in English and Law at Queen's University in Belfast, Ms Flanigan, who carries joint British and Irish nationality, went on to work as a solicitor in Portadown in County Armagh.

She later travelled to work in Bosnia and Rwanda. She met her husband Jose Maria Aranaz, a Spanish lawyer, in Rwanda.

Ms Flanigan and her husband had reportedly planned to return home to Northern Ireland for Christmas when she was kidnapped.

Her community in Northern Ireland rallied round to support her with special prayers said at her local church.

BBC Producer Mary Campbell, a friend of Ms Flanigan, described her as "small in stature but a strong character. Very stylish. She is a great storyteller and was always interested in the wider world".

ANGELITO NAYAN

Angelito Nayan, 34, received strong support from his community in the Las Pinas suburb of Manila in the Philippines.

Members held vigils and masses regularly since his capture and his release was relayed around the streets there by loudspeaker.

Mr Nayan was a staff member in the Philippine Senate before travelling to university in Tokyo to study international relations.

He also worked in Kosovo.

Philippine department of foreign affairs secretary Alberto Romulo has said Mr Nayan is an "idealist, a talented person".

Mr Nayan's brother, Ernesto, was given compassionate leave from his job in Kuwait to return to the family in the Philippines during the abduction.

SHQIPE HABIBI

Shqipe Habibi, like the other hostages, was part of a joint UN-Afghan government team that organised presidential polls on 9 October.

A Muslim from the town of Pec in Kosovo, she found a staunch fighter for her freedom in the family friend and businessman, Behgjet Pacolli, who spent weeks in Kabul trying to secure her release.

Ms Habibi's brother, Agim, also issued a passionate appeal for her release. "Our last family name personifies Love. So, let love, understanding and Mercy rule in this Holy month of Ramadan," he said.

Supporters in Kosovo also rallied to her cause - a 1,000-strong vigil was held in Pec with banners calling for her release.

During the kidnapping, a spokesman for the kidnappers said Ms Habibi, 36, had become unwell.

On the video released by her captors Ms Habibi said she had travelled to Afghanistan because she thought she could help a country similar to her own.