Somali gunmen kidnapped two Italian aid workers on Wednesday in the latest abduction of foreigners in the Horn of Africa country, officials and residents said.
One official said the abducted Italians were a man and a woman. One resident said a Somali aid worker was also seized in the town of Awdigle south of the capital Mogadishu.
Residents said gunmen in three vehicles stormed the offices of an aid group called CNIS, which carries out agricultural projects in the area. They blindfolded the guards, then abducted the two Italians and the Somali head of the organisation.
Kidnapping is a lucrative business in Somalia, and abductors generally treat their captives well in anticipation of a hefty ransom. Somali gunmen are still holding two aid workers, a Briton and a Kenyan, abducted in April. – Reuters