Cairo - German ambassador in Cairo Bernd Erbel has praised Egypt's 'intense efforts' to secure the release of the Germans among the 19 people kidnapped on Sept 19, media reports said on Wednesday.

"We are happy the German hostages plus a Romanian national have returned home in good health," Erbel told the English-language daily The Egyptian Gazette.

The hostages - five German, five Italian and a Romanian tourist, as well as eight Egyptian tour guides, were freed on Monday, 10 days after they were kidnapped while on safari in the Gilf Kebir region of Egypt's Western Desert.

"We are all happy about our common success," he said.

However, Erbel called on Egyptian authorities to take whatever necessary measures in order to 'avoid the repetition of such incident in the future.'

"It will be a pity if desert tourism in Egypt comes to a standstill," he said. Erbel said he had previously visited the area where the 19 were snatched by masked men and knew it "very well."

Erbel said the incident was a rare in Egypt's tourism history, and would not affect the influx of German tourists into the country. An estimated 1.2 million Germans visit Egypt every year, according to the envoy. (dpa)