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Note: The following blog entry is a quote:
http://noburqua.blogspot.com/2008/05/three-aid-workers-kidnapped-in-somalia.html
WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 2008
Three Aid Workers Kidnapped in Somalia
More trouble out of Somalia (via AFP):
MOGADISHU (AFP) — Gunmen kidnapped three aid workers — two Italians and a Somali — in Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region on Wednesday, the latest in a string of attacks against humanitarian groups, officials told AFP.
“Three aid workers, among them two Italians, a man and a woman, were kidnapped early this morning by armed men who blindfolded them and took them away,” local elder Mohamed Ibrahim Ali told AFP.
A local security official confirmed the kidnapping and said the security forces were trying to locate the hostages.
“We are currently investigating who kidnapped them and where they were taken,” Ali Mohamed Gele told AFP.
The kidnapping took place at around 6:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) in the village of Awdhegle, 70 kilometres (45 miles) south of the capital Mogadishu.
The three who were abducted all worked for an Italian non-governmental organisation called Cooperazione Italiana Nord Sud (CINS), or North-South Italian Cooperation, both officials said.
The elder said the non-Italian hostage was Abderahman Yusuf Arale, the local head of the Italian aid group.
In Rome, a foreign ministry spokesman confirmed the kidnapping of the two Italians.
“We are in contact with their families and we are following the situation with much attention,” the spokesman said.
Somalia is notorious for the lack of protection provided to aid workers. Gunmen abducted Dr. Murray Watson and Patrick Amukhuma last month as they worked on a flood control project, and in 2007, food shipments to Somalia were temporarily halted after the head of the UN World Food Program was kidnapped and held captive for 6 days. Throw in the pirates lurking off the coast, and it takes an extraordinary amount of dedication to volunteer to go there.
Prayers for the safe return of these hostages, and continued prayers for the well-being and rescue of Dr. Watson and Mr. Amukhuma, who have not been heard from since their April 1 abduction.
UPDATE: The NGO employing the 3 aid workers has been able to speak to them today (via Khaleej Times):
The Rome-based group, Cooperazione Italiana Nord Sud (CINS), said it had been able to speak with hostages Iolanda Occhipinti, Giuliano Paganini and Abderahman Yusuf Arale.
“CINS has made an initial contact with the three volunteers who said they were well and had not suffered any violence,” the aid group said on its Web site http://cins.pettigna.com .
POSTED BY VICKI AT 7:39 AM
LABELS: AID WORKERS, HOSTAGES, ITALY, SOMALIA
Ships Underway (away from homeport): 149 ships (54% of total)
On deployment: 123 ships (44% of total)
Attack submarines underway (away from homeport): 29 submarines (53%)
On deployment: 18 submarines (33%)
Ships Underway
Carriers:
USS Nimitz (CVN 68) - 3rd Fleet
USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) - Atlantic Ocean
USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) - 5th Fleet
USS George Washington (CVN 73) - 3rd Fleet
USS J.C. Stennis (CVN 74) - Pacific Ocean
USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) - Mediterranean Sea
USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) - Pacific Ocean
Amphibious Warfare Ships:
USS Nassau (LHA 4) - 5th Fleet
USS Peleliu (LHA 5) - 7th Fleet
USS Essex (LHD 2) - Andaman Sea
USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) - Atlantic Ocean
USS Boxer (LHD 4) - Pacific Ocean
USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) - Atlantic Ocean
Tarawa Expeditionary Strike Group:
USS Tarawa (LHA 1) - 3rd Fleet
~~~
Note sub~count/ship~count,,,
IMHO : A window will occur just after the
elections,,,