Somali gunmen freed two European aid workers on Tuesday without receiving a ransom after holding the pair hostage for nine days.
Gunmen have demanded a -million ransom for the release of three aid workers taken over the weekend, a local elder said on Monday.
The Philippines imposed a state of emergency on Tuesday on Jolo island and troops prepared for a possible rescue of three Red Cross workers.
The Philippines said it was impossible to comply with the demand of kidnappers holding three Red Cross workers to empty five towns of security forces.
Gunmen on Monday abducted three foreigners and a Somali working for the UN in southern Somalia, the latest in a string of kidnappings in the nation.