Twenty-three Egyptians, abducted in volatile Libya last week, have been freed and returned to Egypt, the state television reported on Friday.
The 23 arrived early on Friday at Egypt’s al-Salloum city, a border town with Libya, the broadcaster said.
They were freed from gunmen “in coordination with Libyan troops,” the television report said, without giving further details.
Other Egyptian media said that the 23 had been abducted while they were on their way from the western Libyan city of Misrata to the Libyan-Egyptian border.
Libya has descended into chaos since Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in a 2011 uprising.
The Islamic State extremist militia has taken advantage of the chaos and established a foothold in the oil-rich country.
In February 2015, Islamic State executed 21 Egyptian Christian migrant workers in Libya.
The Egyptian army hit back with airstrikes on the group’s then stronghold in the eastern town of Derna.
Since May, forces loyal to Libya’s UN-backed government, based in Tripoli, have been fighting to drive Islamic State from its stronghold in the central city of Sirte.
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