Gaza City, Gazy Strip ? A British aid worker and her parents were released from captivity and brought to Israel early today, days after Palestinian gunmen seized the family in the southern Gaza Strip, officials said.

Kate Burton, 25, a worker with the Al-Mezan human rights group in Gaza, was seized at gunpoint Wednesday with her parents, Hugh and Helen, in the southern town of Rafah. The parents had come to Gaza on vacation to visit their daughter, officials said.

The kidnapping was the latest in a string of abductions of foreigners in recent months that have underlined the inability of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to impose order in the coastal strip since Israel’s withdrawal in September. The growing unrest threatens to weaken Abbas ahead of parliamentary elections next month.

After a frantic two-day search for the hostages, Palestinian security forces managed to win their release late Friday, said Palestinian mediator Kamal Sharafi.

Palestinian security personnel turned over the family to British diplomats early Saturday, and the Burtons were rushed to Israel. The family refused to speak to reporters as they entered Israel. Sitting between her parents, Kate Burton covered her face with an Arab headdress as their car drove away from the Erez crossing. Her father is a retired European Union official.

Kate Burton

A Palestinian security car early today dropped Hugh Burton off in front of an upscale hotel, where British diplomats quickly put him into a diplomatic vehicle and sped away toward Israel. Burton did not speak to reporters, and the mother and daughter were being taken to Israel separately.

A previously unknown group calling itself the Mujahedeen Brigades Jerusalem Branch claimed responsibility for the kidnappings and threatened to abduct more foreigners if Israel doesn’t end its “no-go” zone in the northern Gaza Strip.

The group issued a statement saying it released the hostages as a “goodwill gesture” after receiving assurances that Britain and the European Union would seek an end to the Israeli buffer zone.

“In case this doesn’t happen, the next time we will act differently and the international observers for the next Palestinian elections will be our target,” said the statement.

In previous abductions, the kidnappers have sought jobs in the Palestinian security forces, the release of imprisoned relatives or other personal favors. In all cases, the victims have been released safely. It was unclear whether the Burtons’ kidnappers had made similar demands.