American aid worker Jeff Woodke was released from captivity in West Africa after being held by his Nigerian captors for more than six years.

According to the Bring Jeffrey Woodke Home website, Woodke is a missionary who had been performing humanitarian aid work in Niger for more than three decades before being kidnapped from his residence in Abalak, Niger, Oct. 14, 2016.

“I spoke with Jeffery’s family today and am pleased they will be reunited soon,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a March 20 State Department news release. “We are grateful for the extraordinary cooperation of the government of Niger, as well as the sustained efforts of countless organizations and individuals worldwide that resulted in Mr. Woodke’s release."

In a statement posted on the Bring Jeffrey Woodke Home website, his wife, Els Woodke, expressed her relief at the news of her husband’s release. She offered thanks to everyone in the government and others around the globe who have worked to free her husband. 

She also praised God for responding to the prayers of Christians worldwide who had been praying for her husband’s safe return, according to the statement.

President Joe Biden offered thanks to the Nigerian government for its role in brokering Woodke’s release, according to a March 20 White House news release.

"The United States extends our deep appreciation to the Nigerian government, which was a critical partner in helping to secure his release," Biden said in the release.

In the White House release, Biden also thanked the members of the FBI’s Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, the military and Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs based at the State Department for helping to bring Woodke home.

"I have no higher priority than bringing home U.S. nationals held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad, and we will continue to work relentlessly to secure their freedom around the world,” Blinken added, according to the State Department release.