UN diplomat tells of al-Qaeda kidnapping in Niger
Former UN Special Representative to Niger, Robert Fowler, was kidnapped and held hostage by al-Qaeda for five months.
He told HARDtalk's Zeinab Badawi about his experience of being kidnapped and his relationship with his captors, including meeting Mokhtar Belmokhtar who was a leading figure in al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) at the time.
You can watch the full interview on BBC World News on Tuesday 4 June at 14:30 and 20:30 GMT and on the BBC News Channel on Wednesday 5 June at 00:30 BST.