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South African Gert van Deventer, who is being held captive by Al Qaeda militants in northern Mali, has pleaded for his release "by any means possible".
He made the appeal in a video recorded on 15 March and supplied on Thursday to the media by the humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers.
Founder, Dr Imtiaaz Sooliman said the video was received late Wednesday night by their hostage negotiator Yehhia Dicko, who arrived in Bamako on Sunday and made contact with an intermediary the following day.
He said that person had also assisted Dicko during negotiations for the release of another South African, Stephen McGown, who was Al Qaeda's longest-held captive before his release in 2017 after seven years in captivity.
However, Sooliman said the intermediary would only be available after Ramadaan.
"On Tuesday Yehhia met another group of intermediaries who are young people who have been sending us videos and information on the case related to Gert van Deventer," he said.
Sooliman added that Dicko received Van Deventer's video last Wednesday night, in which he again appeals for assistance to get him out of captivity.
Meanwhile, in the video, shot on the 15th of March, Van Deventer appears calm as he appeals for help from the South African government.
He says he was kidnapped on the third of November 2017 in Awbari in Libya on his way to the work site.
Van Deventer was sold eight months later to Al Qaeda militants in Mali, who initially wanted a $3 million ransom for his release, which Gift of the Givers managed to have reduced to $500 000.
Sporting a long beard and wearing Islamic attire, Van Deventer said he made the one-minute-38-second video as it was his last hope.
"I was kidnapped on 3 November 2017 in Awbari Libya on the way to the work site where I was contracted as the site medic," he said.
"On the same day, three Turkish engineers were also kidnapped [and] after 8 months I was sold to the JNIM and brought to the north of Mali."
Van Deventer said that during his captivity he was shot in the left arm and now has limited movement "due to the misaligned bones".
He said he got a glimmer of hope when he heard about the new South African embassy in Algeria.
"It awoke me, pushed me to do something and build a bridge to reach the world outside.
"This video that you are watching is my last hope.
"I want my release to be made possible by any means possible," he pleaded.
