AN Egyptian tour guide kidnapped four Germans in a bid to trade them for his two sons overseas in the custody of his estranged German wife. Egyptian security officials on Tuesday contacted the kidnapper, urging him to give himself up, police said. “The security forces are in telephone contact with him to convince him to surrender with the four hostages and to promise him that the Egyptian foreign ministry will try to bring back his children,” a police source said. Police added that the hostage taker was holed up in a home in the Karnak neighbourhood of Luxor. The kidnapper is apparently armed with a pistol and grenades. – AFP