Two Doctors Without Borders employees were released Wednesday after being detained last week in the Central African Republic, the NGO said.
One worker is French, the other Centrafrican, and both had been held in the southern town of Zemio before transfer to Bangui.
MSF confirmed the release occurred late on March 11, ending days of uncertainty over the fate of its detained colleagues.
The Central African defence ministry accused the French aid worker of activities aimed at destabilising security and fostering subversive agitation locally.
Authorities claimed the suspect maintained contacts with criminal elements and sought to turn the Azande ethnic group against legally elected leaders.
The release coincides with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot’s visit to Bangui, the first by a French diplomat in seven years.
MSF said its employees had travelled to Zemio as part of a humanitarian mission operating in northern Democratic Republic of Congo since February.
The NGO added their visit followed an invitation from local civil authorities, conducted entirely under official supervision and humanitarian purpose.
Centrafican officials alleged the French worker crossed illegally from the DRC, a claim the aid organisation rejected as unfounded.
Security tensions remain in Haut-Mbomou, a southeastern region bordering South Sudan and the DRC, despite improvements since the country’s decade-old civil war.
Clashes between the Central African armed forces, backed by Russian Wagner mercenaries, and a local Azande militia were reported as recently as January.
Past cases illustrate the risks: Belgian-Portuguese consultant Joseph Martin Figueira was sentenced to ten years forced labour in 2024 for alleged state security threats.
Aid workers continue to navigate a fragile landscape, balancing urgent humanitarian missions with local suspicions and enduring regional instability.
MSF described the release as a welcome step, emphasising the essential work of its teams amid complex security challenges.