News In Brief

American couple freed by Sri Lankan captors

A kidnapped American couple was released Tuesday by their Sri Lankan captors, the State Department announced. ''They are in good spirits, they are in good health, and they're obviously overjoyed to be alive and free,'' spokesman John Hughes said.

Mr. Hughes expressed the ''heartfelt thanks'' of the US government to the governments of Sri Lanka and India for close cooperation in freeing Stanley and Mary Elizabeth Allen, who had been held by Tamil separatist guerrillas.