Story highlights Johan Gustafsson kidnapped by al Qaeda branch in Mail in 2011

Swedish official: "Extensive efforts have been made to secure his release"

(CNN) Swedish hostage Johan Gustafsson, who had been held captive for six years by a branch of al Qaeda in Mali, has returned to Sweden after the militants released him, the Swedish government said.

Margot Wallstrom, Swedish minister for foreign affairs, said Monday she was "extremely pleased" that Gustafsson had been reunited with his family after so long.

"Johan's situation has affected many of us, and extensive efforts have been made to secure his release," Wallstrom said in a statement.

Gustafsson, 42, was kidnapped from a restaurant in Timbuktu while on vacation in Mali in 2011 along with South African Stephen McGown and Dutch national Sjaak Rijke. A fourth man, a German, was shot dead after trying to resist the kidnappers, according to the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet , a CNN affiliate.

The paper said Gustafsson's mother was overjoyed to hear that her son was now free, describing her reaction as "grateful and happy."

Read More