Three people who were among a group of US and Canadian missionaries kidnapped by an armed gang in Haiti have been released, according to their organisation.

Sixteen Americans and one Canadian were abducted in mid-October after they visited an orphanage in an area run by a powerful criminal gang.

The group consisted of five men, seven women and five children.

The gang reported to be behind the kidnappings, which goes by the name of 400 Mazowo, later demanded a ransom of $1m (£740,000) for each of the 17 people being held.

In April, the gang abducted a group of Catholic clergy who were later released.

This year has been particularly bad, with nearly 800 kidnappings reported before the end of October.

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